OTAGO HOSPITAL BOARD.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20905, 20 December 1929, Page 20

OTAGO HOSPITAL BOARD.

MONTHLY MEETING,

The Otago Hospital . Board held its monthly meeting last night; present--Messrs W. E. S. Knight (chairman), J. W, Scurr, G. Callaway, A. F. Quelch, W. B, Morgan, W. M'Lennair, Dr Newlands, Mrs Walter Ross,'Mrs Marshall Macdonald and Miss Runcijnan.

A motion of sympathy was passed with the Rev. V, G. Bryan-King in the recent death of his .wife. - "

FRIENDLY SOCIETIES’ MEMBERS

A deputation from the Friendly Societies’ Council waited on the board with regard to the rate'of payment for benefits for members of friendly societies in the hospital. The question ha& been before the board for some time. Appreciation was expressed of the concessions allowed to members of friendly societies, and the board was' asked to give further consideration to the matter of maintenance charges. Woiild-the board consider a proposal on the same lines as those existing between societies and the North Canterbury Hospital Board—payment per bed occupied, that the same-average as was collected from the general public per annum. The chairman said, the matter would receive full consideration at the hands of the Finance Committee. CORRESPONDENCE.

Messrs Walker and Anderson (solicitors) wrote notifying the board of a legacy of £2OO to the Hospital under the will of Mrs J. A. Blakeley, of Dunedin.— Received with thanks.

The Minister of Health (Mr A. J. Stallworthy), wrote stating that he had caused inquiry to be made into the question of the liability of the Prisons Department in respect to the maintenance in the Hospital of William Braunmnn, a prisoner. He did not think it could be rightly urged that liability, should be extended to cover cases such as that of Brauman, and he regretted to have to say, therefore, that he could not intervene to further the board’s claim against the Prisons’ Board,—lt was resolved to' wait on the Attorney-general with regard ,to the matter.

The medical director ■wrote reporting the gift of a wireless set from an anonymous donor, per the Rev. V. G. Bryan Kihg, to the Walcarl Hospital.——Received with thanks.

The .secretary, of,.the Nurses and-Mid-wives’ Registration Board, Wellington, wrote stating that it had been brought under the_ notice of the board- that in some training schools- for maternity nurses the probationers were not being given special training in invalid- cookery, and it was decided to write to training schools advising that the board required every maternity nurse to receive instruction in the cooking and preparation of food.

The secretary of the South Otago Hospital Board wrote stating that his board had had under consideration the giving to probationer nurses an opportunity to have the final six months of their third year in the Dunedin Hospital, so that they might have the advantage of experience that could only be gained in large hospitals.—Referred to the Hospital Committee to act. The town clerk of St. Hilda wrote notifying the appointment of Mr J. W. Dove to the vacancy on the board caused by the death of air Hall.—The communication was received, and it was resolved to appoint Mr Dove on the Works and Finance Committees. E. STANDPIELD’S CASE.

This case came before the board again in the form of a letter from Standfield, who stated that ho wished to declinc an offer made to him of 30s a week for leading a blind man. He said his temperament would not allow him to take up the work, and in addition lie did not possess the endurance for such a task.

Mr Scurr said the board had been more than kind to Standfield, and'tfio time had come when it should take »a definite stand in regard to him. He moved that the amount now given ±o Standfield lor relief (10a per week) bo discontinued at the end of January.** Mr Gallaway said that if the man was fit to do the work offered to him he ought to do it. Would Dr Thomson (medical superintendent) say that Standfield was fit to work?

Dr Thomson said that Stausfiold was fit to do the job offered to him. Mrs Ross seconded the motion, which was carried with the addition of these words: “If,,after examination by the honorary medical ; staff, the man is regarded as fit to undertake light work.” "

THE DOCTOR’S PRIVILEGE

Mr Gallaway said hc\ishcd to refer to the remarks made _by the coroner at the conclusion of-a recent inquest. The coroner was reported-, to. have sahl: ‘A doctor, had no. privilege when he was called, on to,.give evidence. The position of a,private practitioner who was consulted': ijy a patient was a somewhat different matter, and he; should not divulge information given .to him in conhdonee. The matter. was, : of eburse, quite different when;,the information had been obtained arid ’the’ doctor: was called upon to.give evidence. ...The case of a public institution and that of a private practitioner were, however, not analagous. The Hospital was a public institution, and when patients went in there the medical officers were not luatibaling,with the patients as pm ate- practitioners would.” The coroner added that the matter-was one to which the authorities should <nve serious; consideration. For himself continued Mr Gallaway; he did not agrees with those remarks. If the coroner was light a question of class distinction was at once lamed, because the person who could afford to go to a private hospital Mould bo treated; differently from the poison admitted to. the public hospital. He could not agree with that principle. dM " d ° nald Said tll!lt if a patient did not give necessary information to the doctor it would,he against his or her !n C . rC f t 3, was desirable for the .proper treatment of the

Hr Newlands said they ought not to take too much notice of the remarks of one who was not an authority. The utteianees of judges and magistrates often received a prominence in the press that they did .not deserve. He thought it was unfortunate that the words “ class distinction« had been used, either by .Mr C» ad hi way or by a newspaper. It was practically the universal rule for all cases of suspected improper abortion to be sent to a hospital, because a private practitioner did not wish to deal with such cases. If a difference \verb nade ■between the relationship of the doctor ns a doctor in a public institution and the relationship of the doctor in an.outr side' institution or private institution a serious error would be committed, even though it might be legal. The first cs scntial in the relationship between patient and-doctor was that confidence should not he violated. It seemed to him someuhat invidious that the privilege allowed legally to lawyers and by custom to the clergy was utterly withheld fioin doctors. Confidence between a lawyer and his client was privileged, and although the confidence between a inspected criminal or other pcfrson in the dutches of the law and his spiritual advisor was not legally privileged, it t wus in fact, privileged. He admitted that the legal interpretation was that a doctor had no privilege in the witness box, but the magistrate, in down his opinion that the medical man should he a common informer was going outside his jurisdiction altogether. The chairman expressed, the opinion that there should be no distinction between a medical man in private practice and the members of the board’s medical staff. The matter was not further discussed.

COMPLIMENTARY. Tiic chairman- thanked members for the assistance they had given him during ic jeau He also spoke in commendatory terms of the manner in which their duties had been performed by the secretary (Mr Jacobs) and staff, the honoraiy and resident staffs of the hospital, the nursing staff, and all others who ’ id help in the board's institutions, both in town and country, and to all he extended the season's greetings. Mr Quolch replied, thanking the chair man for ids remarks and his kind wishes.