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Corporation have not thought it reasonable to apply the suggestion
of Circular 30/51 regarding the use of local hospitals only, to
imply the exclusion of Croydon practitioners sending cases by
ambulance transport to the Out-patient departments of London
Teaching Hospitals. It is not thought that radio control will be
of material assistance in the better deployment of the services
especially vehicles operating outside the borough. No particular
design of stretcher case ambulance has been found necessary, but
special 10-seater "clinic" ambulances have proved of great
value. Transport Officers at busy hospitals are essential if
patients are not to be overlooked and vehicle space wasted. Long
distance journeys by ambulances are now uncommon, as almost
all patients can be dealt with satisfactorily by ambulance and
rail transport.
Abuse of the service insofar as a breach of statutory provisions
is concerned is rare but in division (c) the position is perhaps
comparable with the demands which arose for other facilities
under the National Health Service Act, and for which a suitable
form of financial discouragement was ultimately imposed.
Prevention, Care and Aftcr-Care
Tuberculosis
l1-The Corporation reimburse to the Regional Hospital
Board part of the salary of the Chest Physician and his deputy.
Apart from this formal recognition of their dual capacity of
preventing and treating tuberculosis, there is the important factor
that they are concerned with the same population as the local
health authority and that the latter is the housing, education
and sanitary authority. In such circumstances, it is fair to
observe that to produce an artificial division of the Croydon
Tuberculosis service would be more difficult than the preservation
of the unity which existed for over 30 years. In fact, no difficulties
have been revealed and the integration of the treatment of
tuberculosis within the general hospital system has undoubtedly
been to its advantage. I believe the service has greater scope
and facilities than before the appointed day. On the fundamental
issue of housing, the Chest Physician advises the Department on
every case, and the Corporation Housing Committee affords first
priority to these applicants. The 4 Tuberculosis Visitors and the
Almoners and Clerk who are employed by the Corporation work
at the Chest Clinic under the day to day supervision of the Chest
Physician. The Health Committee administers after-care
functions through a section of one of its Sub-Committees, there
being no voluntary after-care organisation. The usual loan of