View report page

19
in other cases where specialised treament is wanted, there is often
considerable difficulty in obtaining the necessary letters demanded
by the Hospital.
There is considerable difficulty in getting children out-patient
treatment in the district. The medical practitioners of the district
on the staff of the Hospital take a month on duty in rotation to see
out patient cases. As can well be imagined this is a thoroughly
unsatisfactory system in that the doctor coming on duty has the
remains of one, two, three or more doctor's leavings to carry on
with, cases which he has not seen from the beginning when they
were of some interest compared with what they are when he sees
them. In the same way, his leavings are handed on to his successor,
and as they admit, this system is entirely unsatisfactory. It
might be said that these cases should go to a Poor Law Medical
Officer, but there are a considerable number of the cases which
want special investigations which it would not be fair to expect a
Poor Law Medical Officer to carry out, and which can only be done
where all the facilities of a Hospital exist. The appointment of
a House Surgeon is mooted, and this may perhaps improve matters.
I have personally been able to get a great deal done as I have many
friends on the staffs of the London Hospitals, general and dental,
but it should not be that the personality of the Officer in charge of
the work should be able to obtain treatment which should be available
for any child, no matter who the Officer in charge is.
4. Fever—This district joins with Richmond in the
form of a Joint Hospital Board, which is responsible for the
Mogden Hospital dealing with Scarlet Fever, Diphtheria and
Enteric, and the Dock well Hospital with 13 beds for the
accommodation of Smallpox .
AMBULANCE FACILITIES.
(a). For Infectious Cases.—This is provided by the Joint
Hospital Board.