The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1878-08-31

+ 81 HaHa HA AtE - HN"- "H~HH NA E.HH $3.50
matter entirely between the physician and the
patient JoHS ; Nc6EES n D,
Cu,s. 7. RODGERS. NJ. D.,
Gas. :. klrTGEpGE, NJ. u.
DR.. Stangenwald was also consulted on The sub
jet. and although be preferred not TO sign the
above paper. on the ground chiefly that be was
virtually withdrawn from active praeiiee. and did
not wish % take part In any public movement Of
any Kind. be nevertheless signiaed bis entire and
hearty concurrence in The object Cor which ! was
working. and expressed in the most cordial man-
ner his desire for its success lie declared that no
candid or iair-minded person who really under
stood the merits OF the question could possibly take
any other rietc Of e 1Gs tie one I advocated, lie
spoke Of the present system and Of the spirit which
prevailed il The management, In terms OF decided
condemnation using language quite as strong II
not stronger, than any | have ever employed In
any article / have published on the subject. We
thus ind that Dr. MeGrew, St~augenwaid. Kit
tredge and Rodgers all united 10 condemning the
present arrangement, aud desiring a radical change.
That Or. Tisdale also eoncurs with the rest Of us
IN this matter. aud desires the adoption Of a more
liberal policy in the management Of the Hospital.
IS a fact which | presume no one will either doubt
OF dispute.
Two medical gentlemen. on The other baud, Drs.
Hoffman, aud Hutchinson. have been quoted by
the Committee as expressing themselves in opposi-
ton TO The proposed change, and in favor Of main
tanning the present monopoly. l have no desire
to reflect unfairly in any way on either Of these
gentlemen. or upon their motives in the matter,
but in forming a correct judgment upon the value
OF their opinions. and the weight they ought 20
have in the premises, certain facts need to be kept
in mind. In the first place, DR.. Hoffman, is himself
one of the Trustees Of the Hospital, and as such
naturally inclined TO uphold existing arrange
ments. Any unfavorable criticism on the present
order of things, and any demand for a change,
would be apt to strike him as an attack on some
thing with which be was ideatiGed, aud for which
he was in some degSee responsible. and therefore
as a thing to be resisted. DR.. Hoffman, is, more
over, a gentleman omewhat advanced In years,
almost entirely Withdrawn from the active practice
of his profession. and, as a consequence, caring
but little for the clinical advantages Afforded by
the Hospital; while on the other hand, should be
choose to avail himself Of these, his position AS a
Trustee would afford him facilities for so doing.
from which the majority of the profession are
excluded. AS for DIR. Hutchinson, / trust there
may be no improperly in suggesting that his
official and professional relations as a member Of
the Board Of Health and otherwise, are Of such a
nature as would be very apt 10 materially inhu-
ence his views on this subject. In view of facts
we'll understood, but which it might be considered
scarcely proper 10 refer TO more particularly here,
it could hardly be expected that he should take
ground in opposition to the wishes or the supposed
interests of DR.. MeKibbin. 1t should be remem-
bered also that DR.. Hutchinson alone Of all the
physicians, not officially connected with the Hos.
pital, already enjoys in a large measure the
facilities for observation and study which the
institution affords. Whenever any physician is
called in consultation it is always DIR. Hutchinson;
when ally assistance is needed in the performance
of any operation it is the same gentleman who is
and he states that be is always made
welcome to the Hospital and treated with the
utmost courtesy and consideration by the Attend
ing Physician. This may be, and apparently is,
entirely satisfactory TO DIR. Hutchinson, but the
rest of the profession, who are never called in con-
~sultation, never even invited 10 visit the Hospital,
and never informed Of any matter Of professional
interest which may be transporting therein, can
hardly be expected to view the arrangement with
equal complacency.
There are at the present time besides DIR. Nc
Kibbin seven physicians practicing in Honolulu,
and one gentleman who, though l believe not a
regular NJ. d., has a license to practice. OF all
these, only two-Drs. Hoffman, and Hutchinson
uphold the present system. Comment on these
facts is, 1 think, unnecessary.
Such being the position of the medical profession
in Honolulu, let us inquire briefly how those ply.
sicians stand who are practicing on the other
Islands. At the time the matter was presented TO
the Board Of Trustees, these were six in number,
OF these six, Gve-or all but one-had ex-
pressed themselves to me verbally OF in writing as
decidedly in favor of the proposed change. The
exception was DR.. Thompson, of Kohala. That
has written a letter on the subject
l believe is now in the possession Of the
of the Hospital. | should very much
to see it published. The following extracts
from letters received by me fairly represent, /
think, the general sense OF the profession. DIR.
Wetmore, Of Hilo, Hawaii, writes as follows under
date Of February 9Th, 1873:
ALLOW me to say. | most fully and heartily in
dorse the views presented in these papers. and
hope that the Committee, in their wisdom, will
make the necessary changes in the working Of the
and thus place it on a footing with like
public Institutions in other countries, and thereby
enhance It's usefulness TO all concerned.
Isolated as l am in my practice, / feel all the more
las | from time 10 time visit the metrOpolis) the
need Of the advantages to be gained by me per-
sonally and through me by my patients generally,
from such a change in conducting the institution"
FROM q letter OF Ut. j. n. SmllD, OF haual, dated
February LIST, 1878, | extract the following:
4" 1t is only necessary for me TO say that the plan
your memorandum proposes is substantially that
adopted in all the public hospitals in New York and
Brooklyn with which l am acquainted, aud it seems
to me that there can be no question as to the desir-
ableness Of the change you advocate.
father (Dr. j. w. smith, quite agrees with me
IN this opinion
I trust that in the foregoing 1 have made sufi-
GENTLY plain to my readers the correctness Of the
proposition with which l set out, viz: that in main
tanning the present monopoly at the Hospital, the
Trustees are going directly contrary to the i%ntelli-
gent opinion and deliberate judgment Of the medical
in this country. What their object may
be in thus setting up their own notions Of hospital
and the interests Of one particular indi-
Vidual against what they know to be the views Of a
majority Of the men who make such matters the
business and study of their lives, 1 will not under
to say. II they have any good reasons, or any
reasons which they suppose to be good, for the course
have pursued, the intelligent public who feel