HOSPITAL RETRENCHMENT.

Timaru Herald, Volume XLIII, Issue 3588, 31 March 1886, Page 3

HOSPITAL RETRENCHMENT .

TO THE EDITOR OF THE TIMAIUT HERALD. Sib, — " Convalescent " evidently thinks tlmt a little abuse of me as a correspondent will help his case, and so he devotes a long paragraph to commenting upon, my being "a little choleric," "feeling annoyed," &o. I might well retort that tho evidence of the existence of these feelings is all on tho other side, and Unit it is the old trick of tho guilty party raising the cry of " stop Ihief." But what may be my feelings, or those of my amiable friend "Convalescent," is not the question under public discussion or of public interest. The issuo I raise, and which I mean to stick to, is tho necessity for the expense reci'iircd m maintaining a resident medical (.'filter at tho Hospital. The professional capabilities of (lie individual wbo may happen to hold that position have nothing to do with the question, and "Convalescent" will catch a weasel asleep when ho succeeds m his evident at tempt to draw me on to that ground. It would make no difference to this question of noci s.-ity supposing the resident medico was as a gi'int to pigmies m relation to the other medicos. Neither is it to the point thnt " tho register of the institution rhould be looked into to ascertain the per centage of successes and failures m the operation performed there fur the past few yours." The question is, m how many rases has the presenco of a reiiden'j medical of!:eor eared life, or alleviated suffering or been lieccasnry to the sucivfj of mi operation, and which results would have been endangered if say Mint same ineuiYo bad ber-n non-ie.-ideiit. That is tho simple issuo to be decided. Only- that, it, must !>l' remembered that, the conditions for suuiniouiDL' v noii-ri-aiilent medko avo now very different from what they have been, seeing that the Ifosi'itnl is m telephonic communication wilh the houses ■ f ::li the doctors, and facilities arc thus m cxiste::cv which were not formerly. "Convalescent" dooi not attempt to show that Micro is uny uioro necessity for a resident medico for the average of five or six cjecs m tlio iros;ii(;il (.' an for the scores of similar cases m our lioiulm. Your correspondent's El.iU-uipnt " thnt the Hospital would naturally be nlwny's a scvmitl-iry consrieiatiun with Ibo regular merlic.'.l practitioners, and Miat it is not m the nature of ]:h*Hc:l men to neglect lheir own interests m order to give themselves up to deeds of ber.cvo'.enee " is a f'i'il nitons libel upon the medical men. The Hospital would i!'.st he :i secondary consideration with them ; it would receive nn eijir.il plnec with their other duties, and it would bo directly to their sell" inteie.-t to be regular attentive and scrupulously zealous m their duties, a? these qualities manifested then would bo a public advertisement, and would react beneficially on their outside practice. " Convalescent " professes not to understand the last paragraph of my litter ; let me then explain. I'aticnts have their own prejudices nml preferences as to tho medical man thoy would liko to attend upon them, and will rather endure some discomforts m their homes or m boarding-houses where they ciin got their choice than go to tho Hospital where that Doctor has not cvou the opportunity of smiling upon them m jroing round the ward. And it is r.ot likely that Doctors will bo forward to send their patients m whose cases they lake a deep interest, away to an institution which they are not jiormitted to enter as Doctors. I hope " Convalescent " will m his next, stick to the issue I have raised of necessity, and not fly off into sido issues which really have nothing to do with the question. I am, &c , RETItENCmiEXT.