SCIENTIFIC HEALING.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume L, Issue 16370, 1 March 1924, Page 7

SCIENTIFIC HEALING.

Value of sound diagnosis

(l’er P ress Association.) AUCKLAND, last night

The value of accurate diagnosis was ttic chief subject discussed by Mr. Carrick Robertson m Iris presidential address to members of the Medical Conference at the civic reception in the down Hall to-night, "For the sake of those outside llie profession,” he said, ‘‘in the treatment of disease the most important element is diagnosis. Before you can apply any remedy in a scientiiic: and effective manner’..Vo a inutety. located .the'j. ■iiatuiy' of 'Urn;- trouble.’ 'An . motor mechanic who") has -to deal with; engine trouble does not proceed by guess work. His first care is to find out exactly what is wrong. He, knows well Unit his efforts at applying the remedy are all in vain as long as he lails to discover the exact cause of the imperfect running of the machine. Patients often come to as with a ready-made diagnosis of their own. If we should agree and administer some treatment to meek the case as described by the patient he will be satisfied, and probably be pleased at our recognition of bis acumen, but if we so net we cease to be scientists, for we Well know titan the convenient formula, liver out of order, may mean nothing of the kind. These ready-made diagnoses will not do. We must exert every faculty, like a detective following a clue, and make use of all our knowledge and experience in clinical diagnosis. “Many medical men nelieved, as 1 believed', that with the end of the war would come widespread appreciation ot scientific methods. We thought that from returned soldiers and tLoir families the, public would have learned such striking lessons on the value of scientific healing, that the educational value of the great experience gained in the war would be very noticcaole. Amone us to day it seemed reasonable to hope that men would no longer be satisfied with attempts at healing which were not based on sound diagnostic methods. As far as one can judge, the losson lias not been taken to heart, at all events as much as one would desire. Haphazard methods seem to be as popular; as over. Men still pour into consulting rooms of self-chosen healers and others who have never gone through scientific training and who carry on their alleged work of healing, quite, apart from the accumulated experience of organised science, and the massed acquisitions ot o tlmdox medicine.”

The proceedings of the Conference, which will be continued next week, will not be open to the press, but official reports will be supplied.