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REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR-GENERAL OF HEALTH The Director-General op Health to the Hon. the Minister op Health, Wellington. I have the honour to lay before you the annual report of the Department for the year 1949-50. The following changes have occurred among the senior staff of the Department during the year ended 31st March, 1950 : Dr. T. R. Ritchie retired on superannuation from the position of Director-General of Health. Dr. John Cairney (formerly Superintendent-in-Chief, Wellington Hospital Board) was appointed Director-General of Health. Miss M. I. Lambie retired on superannuation the position of Director, Division of Nursing. Miss E. R. Bridges (formerly Nurse Instructor, Head Office) was appointed Director, Division of Nursing. Dr. L. C. McNickle resigned from the position of Director, Division of Hospitals. Dr. C. A. Taylor (formerly Director, Division of Tuberculosis) was appointed Director, Division of Hospitals. Dr. G. L. McLeod (formerly Medical Officer of Health, Wellington) was appointed Assistant Director, Division of Hospitals. Dr. J. Russell resigned from the position of Director, Division of Mental Hygiene. Dr. R. G. T. Lewis (formerly Medical Superintendent, Kingseat Mental Hospital) was appointed Director, Division of Mental Hygiene. Dr. D. F. Eastcott was appointed Assistant Director (Epidemiology), National Health Institute. I should like to make special mention of the services rendered to the Department by Dr. T. R. Ritchie and Miss M. I. Lambie. Dr. Ritchie joined the Department in 1918 after his return from war service in Gallipoli and France. After serving in a number of senior positions in the Department (including a period in Western Samoa) he was promoted in 1943 to the position of Deputy Director-General of Health. On the retirement of Dr. M. H. Watt early in 1947, Dr. Ritchie acted as Director-General of Health for some months before being formally appointed to that position in October, 1947. Throughout his service Dr. Ritchie was motivated by the highest ideals, and his contribution to the work of the Department has been real and lasting. Miss Lambie also joined the Department in 1918. In 1931 she was appointed Director, Division of Nursing, a position which she held up to the time of her retirement. Miss Lambie's contribution to the work of the Department and to the advancement of the nursing profession in the Dominion has been outstanding. She is recognized throughout the world as an authority on nursing matters. Both Dr. Ritchie and Miss Lambie carry with them into retirement the very best wishes of their colleagues. The vital and medical statistics which appear in the report are, in general, for the calendar year 1949. On the other hand, financial figures and, in particular, the reports of the Divisions of Hospitals and Clinical Services are for the year ended 31st March, 1950. A Medical Statistics Branch of the Department was established in March, 1949, and this year the report of the Branch appears as a separate section. Figures are given showing the trends in birth-rate, death-rate, infant mortality, and maternal mortality,

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