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128
APPENDIX II.
TUBERCULOSIS DISPENSARY.
REPORT FOR THE YEAR 1932.
By H. Tylford Howell, M.R.C.S., Eng., L.E.C.P., Lond.,
Clinical Tuberculosis Officer.
In order to present a coherent statement of the work of the Dispensary
during any year, it is necessary to recapitulate briefly details of routine
given in previous reports.
For the sixth year in succession there has, fortunately, been no change
in the personnel of the department.
The sessions have remained unaltered, patients being seen on Monday,
Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday mornings from 10 to 12
o'clock; Wednesday evenings from 5.30 to 7 ; and on Thursday
evenings from 7.30 to 9 o'clock. Saturday mornings are reserved as far
as possible for school children, and the evening sessions are intended for
those patients who are at work during the day.
In view of recent critical remarks in the press with reference to the
lengthy periods of waiting in the out-patient department of some hospitals,
I would like to point out that, owing to the ample dressing-room accommodation
available, the majority of our patients are seen within a quarter of
an hour of their arrival, and seldom—unless during an unforeseen rush of
work—are they called on to wait for half an hour.
The practice of the two medical officers consulting one another on most
new cases and afterwards discussing the appropriate form of treatment or
points of special difficulty, is being continued. Facilities for further
consultations are also available in the various departments of the Hospital.
The opinion of a Physician, Surgeon, Laryngologist, Radiologist, Pathologist
or Dentist can be immediately obtained, and a case thoroughly investigated
without loss of time. We specially appreciate the facilities for consultations
with the Hospital Staff, as they not only enable us to discuss individual
cases, but afford opportunities for keeping in touch with other opinions
generally, and of witnessing new methods of treatment and diagnosis and
estimating their value.
We are grateful to the Hospital for providing immediate admission in
cases of emergency, and to the Staff for their courtesy in giving us every
facility for following up these cases in the wards.
The number of cases referred to the X-ray Department tends to increase
as the value of X-rays in diagnosis increases. Radiology is making
rapid strides, and recent improvements in technique, together with greater
experience in the interpretation of the films, has rendered it our most
valuable aid in diagnosis. The question of expense must of necessity
always receive due consideration, but the detection of tuberculosis in its
early stage is so essential to successful treatment that I hope we shall
not be called upon to limit the use of X-rays on that score.