The Ensign. MONDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 1910. THE GORE HOSPITAL.

Mataura Ensign, 14 February 1910, Page 2

The Ensign. MONDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 1910. THE GORE HOSPITAL.

A proposal for increasing the accom-i modation at the Gore Hospital was recently approved by the Southland Hospital and Charitable Aid Board. No more emphatic recognition of the necessity' that existed for the institution could be wished for tlian the fact that tho Board, which was chary in establishing the hospital, should now recognise the need for additions. It appears, However, that l)r Yalintinc, the In-spector-General of Hospitals, who was lately in Invercargill, is dubious as to the necessity for the extensions, seeing that though the Gore Hospital is congested there are no fewer than 20 beds unoccupied at the Invercargill institution. He is reported to have said that he considers there must.be some peculiar features this district if the necessity for a large institution exists. The doctor purposes visiting Gore next month and going into the matter before coming to a final decision as to what recommendation he will make. We are sure that if proper representations are made to him they will result in the removal of the dubiety tliat he at present experiences and in the equipment of a hospital adequate for the needs of the district. Dr Valintine should specially bo made fully alive to the extent of the country surrounding Gore on all sides, and to the population of the districts which should act as feeders to the local hospital. This territory is really of considerably greater extent than that naturally leading into Invercargill (if the Wallace Hospital be recognised as serving the greater portion of the Western District). But, unfortunately, owto the present absolutely ridiculous division of the country for local government purposes, the Gore Hospital is not in the meantime likely to got its due. Almost as soon as one leaves Gore to the north-east he comes to the end of the Southland County and to the boundary of the Southland Hospital and Charitable Aid district, which are co-tcrmin-ous, and the people in the Waipahi, Merino Downs, and Waikoikoi districts are in Clutha, while those of Tapanui, Kelso, Crookston, etc., are in Tuapeka. Their contributions for hospitals and charitable aid, which should naturally in part go towards helping the Gore, hospital, are diverted to other purposes, while although their interests aro com-

liion with ours, and they do their business in Gore, they feel diffident in taking advantage of an institution that should suit them admirably and towards which many of them have subscribed. 11l spite of tills serious defection the "wore Hospital has been a busy institution since its establishment, and almost from the beginning lias been short of accommodation. Further, the cases treated have been almost entirely those known as "acute"—proper cases for lios-

pital treatment. It all the cases from ihe extensive district came to Gore, as they should, there simply would be 110 possible means of accommodating them. As is usual when anything is proposed for the benefit of this district the Invercargill press is to be found discounting it. 111 this case the 'News' tliinks it is "reasonable to suppose that the ' doctor will be emphatic in his opposition to additional expenditure 011 the Gore buildings." This is of course of a piece with the opposition shown to tile establishment of tho hospital in the

first place, to tho establishment of the Core High School, ami in tact to anything which tends to make (lore more oi a centre. It is a peculiar j)ositioii to take up, as none of the advantages Gore is securing after much agitation appear to Wave (lone lnvercargill any hanu. Jiut fortunately our district is such that not even the lnvercargill papers can keep it hack; the amenities nf civilisation aiv gradually being added unto us ; and before long the people will demand and secure divorce from lnvercargill control which has done so much to retard tile development ol necessary local institutions.