NATIONAL PROBLEM

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26693, 12 February 1948, Page 6

NATIONAL PROBLEM

COMMENT BY DEAN Asked* for his comments on the present situation, Dr Walsh said he was hopeful that the Government would give urgent consideration to the need for a new school and decided to proceed at'once with its erection. “My chief concern as dean is the quality of the graduate produced by the school,” Dr Walsh said. “It might be said that I should be thinking mainly of the teaching of modern dentistry and that I should not concern myself with the needs of the people. Those needs, it could be claimed, should be considered by the people themselves and by the Government that represents them. But I would be failing in my duty to the people of New Zealand generally if I did not draw attention to the dental needs of the country to-day. “it should be remembered that an improvement in dental health in this country and the provision of a modern dental school capable of producing an adequate number of highly qualified dentists are national problems,” Dr Walsh said. “They are not merely Qftago problems. I am pleased to say that the Council of the University of Otago has pressed the claims for a new dental school very strongly and has given it first priority, while at the same time pointing out that it is a national institution and should not affect the claims of its own institutions.

“There is a great deal to be done at the Dental School,” he added. "We have a considerable amount of research work to do on problems that are vital to the people’s health. There has been a noteworthy move to establish postgraduate courses and already we have been able to hold refresher courses during the vacations. Facilities are also required for the training of specialists. There is much to be done, but little can be achieved under the present conditions. If the people want an adequate dental service they can have it. It is in their hands and they should demand it of the Government they have elected.”