WAIPIATA SANATORIUM COMMITTEE

Southland Times, Issue 23794, 17 April 1939, Page 2

WAIPIATA SANATORIUM COMMITTEE

INSPECTION OF INSTITUTION MADE At a meeting of toe Waipiata Sanatorium Committee held at Waipiata the medical superintendent (Dr A. Kidd) reported that eight patients had been admitted during February, eight had been discharged, and 135 remained on March 1, toe majority of whom was doing well or improving. He reported on his visits to toe different contres in the committee’s district and recommended as suitable for treatment two patients from South Canterbury, one from Waitaki and four from the Southland district.

Dr Kidd also reported on toe unsatisfactory condition of the telephone service and the extreme difficulty in replying to toll calls, and the secretary was directed to again write to the telegraph engineer, Dunedin, with a view to the public telephone service between Ranfurly exchange and the Qrangapai bureau being put in order. The secretary (Mr T. Pryde) reported that at toe date of toe meeeting the associated boards had patients in the institution as follows: Southland 66, South Canterbury 24, Ashburton 10, Waitaki 9, South Otago 18, Vincent four, Maniototo four—a total of 135. Of that number 39 had been in the institution for more than 12 months. Since the previous meeting ten patients from four hospital districts had been discharged. He also reported that there were 22 patients from six hospital districts on the waiting list. During the afternoon the committee inspected the sanatorium buildings, and because of the shortage of accommodation for toe staff decided to make provision in its estimates for the ensuing year for two additional rooms at the porters’ lodge and to utilize portion of the old administrative block formerly used by the medical superintendent as an office, dispensary, laboratory and X-ray room, for accommodation for sick nurses and sleeping accommodation for two or more domestics. The treasurer (Mr Pryde) reported that there was a credit balance at toe Bank of New Zealand, Invercargill, of £2827 0/4. He also submitted preliminary estimates for the year 1939-40, which showed that after allowing for cash on hand and outstanding maintenance fees, and acting on the assumption that until Part 3 of the Social Security Act 1938 became operative, the Associated Hospital Boards would continue to pay 7/- a day for maintenance and treatment of their patients, a levy of £BOO for maintenance and £3462 for capital expenditure would require to be made on the Associated Hospital Boards, allocated on the rateable capital value of each district. The treasurer’s report was adopted, the associated boards and toe department to be advised accordingly, the treasurer also to indicate to the latter the approximate amount each board would have to find on toe basis of last year’s capital values. It was decided to hold the next meeting of the committee in Dunedin

on Wednesday, April 26. There were present at the meeting:— Messrs E. Macdonald (chairman), J. Rodman, J. Ritchie, B. A. Todd, W. J. McKenzie, T. Golden, J. H. Smith, W. H. Wilkinson (representing Mr W. Bryant, Ashburton), and Health Inspector Craighead, representing toe Department of Health.