The Wanganui Chronicle "Nulla Dies Sine Linea." SATURDAY, MAY 23, 1903. HOSPITAL MANAGEMENT.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume XXXXVII, Issue 11953, 23 May 1903, Page 4

The Wanganui Chronicle "Nulla Dies Sine Linea." SATURDAY, MAY 23, 1903. HOSPITAL MANAGEMENT.

The Premiier, who is to officiate at the formal opening of the Victoria Ward of \ha Wanganui Hospital on Monday afternoon1 next, was engaged in a similar mission at Waihi on Monday last. Mr. Seddon presided at the ceremony connected with th 3 opening of an hospital at Waihi, and! h-e is lieported' to have confinedi his remarks entirlely to hfospital matters. He referred to the sources of revenue of hospitals, and said that during: 1901 there were 1787 patients'in the colony's hospitals, costing £67 per patient, the total cost being £114,----123. He regretted to learn from the reports that the inspection and management of hospitals wwejiot as they should be, and complained that though, Goveifaimient contributed more than half the (hospital revenue, it had no control, and was absolutely powerless. He considered that there should be some, supreme tribunal W inquire into the question and! supply the necessary remedy. It is certainly a rather serious complaint to emanate from the head! of the Government. , It is th© fitisfc time that we remember to have heardl Mr. Sedidon admit Ms powerlessness to accomplish any task to which he sett his -handl. As to the suggested ''supreme tntyunal," what better tribunal than Parliaments can' the Premier de ire? Whatever may) be wrong with the system under which the hospitals of the colony are conducted can be rectifiedl by Parliament, which, while it may be, as the Premier- says, powerless to '* interfere in matt-era of aotual administration), is at leaifc responsible for the laws whjioh render possible the evils complained of. The Hospital Boards are of course responsible for the maaiagement, good/or badl, of the instTitutions over which they preside; but> the responsibility, for fha alleged inefficiency of inspectionl referred tity by Mr. Sedidon must be born© by the Government, by whom ! the inspectors are appointed. The: question of control1, however, is one which affects the constoitiationi of the Boards. The present system under whioh Hospital Boards are elected, .viz.,,by tide respective contributing local bodies, is disapproved by a good many peoplel, who consider that the power of direct ©lection should be given to the people. It is a wide question. Mr. Sedidon's complairib as to the Government contributing 'half #xc revenue and yet having no power of control, practically mieans that the general public have no sayin the admrinistration of tfhle funds ,: which they contribute towardls the upkeep of the hospitals. In the strict sense of direct representation this is correct, for the members

of the Boards are certainly not elected by the people. But it' has to be remember, ed that the miunddpall franchise, indeed the , voting power of ifoe people generally, has been considei-ably enlarged, and that as a consequence the local bodies ;who are responsible for the appointment "of representatives to ithe Hospital Boa-ds are more widely representative of the peop'je than il<ey foiineilly weue. It might), therefore, f ba urged with some show of reason that the appointees of the Boards ai'e in reality the chosen representatives of the public. Not so } however, in practice. The furac■■:^(os of a Borough Council andl aj Hospital Board are widely different, andl .a man who might make an excellent Councilor mfigniJ ! J*erchajipo prove but an indiffenent' fjo&rds-

flKn. Moreover, candidates who corniest municipal and county elections 'are not fudged by their qualifications: aa hospital administrators; indeed, tfliat aspect of their probable duibies never eaters into the consideration of their fitness for the office they seek to fill. This is hkxw ifc sometimea comes about that the Hospital Boaflds are sometimes found' pursuing a policy not Inj accordance with the wishes of the people. For example, let us suppose that the people of a boiwigh are strongly in favour of a particular mamioipal policy, and! tUat they are equally united in opinion as to the tiesirability of some important work—say the erection,of a Nurses Home—being* undertaken by the Hospital Boafldi of their; district. In the case of the municipal policy

they secure tike canying out of their wishes by the election of candidates favourable to thie policy, but it -may be thtati those same gentlemen are strongly opposed to the popular idea concerning the hospital, and that as Councillors they will exert their influence to secure the appointment to ths Hospital Board of representatives who will vote to defeat the wishes of thje public. It will He seen that the 'System is consideiiably involved, and that under it peculiar complications distasteful to popular sentiment ane likely to arise. The remedy certainly seems to be the djirect election of the Boards by the people, and it may be that Mr. Seddon was hinting at this when be spoke at Waihi. If so, we hope ihle will be a little more explicit when) he speaks here on Monday next, bothjasto the eaturs of the evils of which he complains and the remedies he proposes.