NEW SERVICE

New Zealand Herald, Volume 79, Issue 24211, 28 February 1942, Page 6

NEW SERVICE

DOCTORS AT NIGHT WARTIME PROVISION TWO TO BE ON DUTY "The Auckland division of the British Medical Association has pleasure in announcing that arrangements for a night emergency service are now complete, and that the service will be available from the night of Sunday, March 1," said Mr. A. Eisdell Moore, president of the Auckland division of the 8.M.A., last night. "The association desires to express appreciation of the help that has been given by the Auckland Hospital Board, by the medical staff of the Auckland Hospital, and by the St. John Ambulance Association. It is only because of this helpful co-operation that the institution of the night, emergency service has been made possible. An Emergency Measure "The association desires to call the attention of the public to the following details:—(l) The service is introduced as a war emergency measure, and is only to be for the duration of hostilities. "(2) The medical service provided is to be that of night emergency service only, and maternity cases will not be attended, as it is considered that arrangements for such cases should have been made with individual doctors previously. "(3) There will be two doctors on duty each night and one of them will be stationed at St. John Ambulance headquarters. "(4) The night service will operate between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. Method to be. Adopted "(5) All requests for a doctor during these hours should be made direct by telephone to St. John Ambulance headquarters. Some indication of the urgency of the call should be given, and an accurate description of the locality is essential, as the difficulties of finding a house are increased by the blackout, and by the fact that the doctor on duty may be going to parts of the city with which he is unfamiliar. "(6) The doctor will arrange transport to hospital if this is necessary. If he considers that the patient should be seen the following day, he will tell the patient so, and the patient will arrange for attention from his own doctor subsequently, but notes regarding the nature of the case and the treatment administered will be available for the patient's own practitioner. The System of Payment "(7) The district over which the service will extend includes all Auckland city and suburbs, as far as Point Chevalier, New Lynn, Onehunga, Ellerslie, Penrose, St. Hsliers and Glendowie.; but it does not include any district on the northern side of the harbour, or areas beyond those mentioned. "(8) The doctors providing that service will do so without personal reward, but the usual fee of £1 Is will be payable by the patient, the money to go to a fund which will be nsed for the benefit of medical men and their families who have suffered through war service. Of the fee of £1 Is, the Government subsidy of 12s 6d will be collected direct from the State, and the remaining 8s 6d collected from the patient. It is hoped that for simplicity in book-keeping the 8s 6d will in most cases be paid to the doctor on his visit, but when the amount is booked, the St. John Ambulance Association will collect it on behalf of the fund. "Pensioners and dependants of soldiers will receive the same consideration from the profession that they have had in the past. Health of the Profession "(9) While any doctor is of course at liberty to answer any night call from his own patients, if he may so desire, one reason for the introduction of the scheme is to attempt to conserve the health of the profession, and if a doctor, in answering a telephone ring at night, refers a patient to the emergency service, it is hoped that the public will co-operate and not ring one doctor after another. By this means the maximum benefit to the community will be achieved, in spite of the depleted medical personnel in Auckland."