The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-10-01
DR.. Francis shaw's
Work on the City
Ambulance.
WHAT is NEEDED MOST.
Surgeon Should Be Given
Full Charge for Best
Results.

Since the advent of DR. Francis Shaw
as ambulance surgeon in this city there
are number of questions arising as to
his duties in connection with the office
! and at present there seems to be some
confusion of ideas relative to his du-
ties. 1t looks as though there would
| be more or less trouble arising from
time to time if things are not arranged
differently.
At the present time DR.. Shaw is sup
posed to go on every call with the po-
| lice ambulance and give what treat
ment he deems necessary to an injured
person before he is placed in the ambu-
lance for the trip to the city hospital.
In nine cases out of ten it is practically
unnecessary to treat a patient before
he is placed in the ambulance and per-
haps in the tenth case a little treat
ment in the pl@2er manner will save
a life.
The majority Of cases for the emer-
| gency ambulance are cases where pa
| tent can not be treated with any re-
suits until he is taken to a hospital or
some place where he can be thoroughly
examined; and in others, patients could
be easily treated if there was a place
at station l where they could be exam
lned properly by the ambulance sur
geon.
There is no place at station l where
person could be brought for exami-
nation, and it is, therefore, necessary,
as has been the custom in the past, to
carry the patient to the city hospital
1t is expected that in few weeks the
sick ambulance which is at the present
time kept in stable near the city hos
pital will be brought to station l. and
1t is supposed that the ambulance doc
tor will have to go on every trip with
this ambulance in addition to looking
after every trip made by the emergen-
cy ambulance.
With the sick ambulance at station
l, the work for it will be double that
of the emergency ambulance, and it is
more than probable that the surgeon
will have to give up more than half
his time looking after sick cases, and
while he is out, calls for the emergen-
cy ambulance are apt to come in and
cases where his assistance would be of
great value have to be taken care Of
without him.
At the present time DR., Shaw is as
much in the dark as to his duties as
any one and as yet his work has not
been mapped out All ambulance cases
to date have been taken direct to the
city hospital on his orders and treated
there, as they were of such calibre
that a minute examination of the body
was necessary to determine the exact
extent of the injury.
With a place at station to make the
examination it would have been possi-
BILE in at least one case this week for
DR. Shaw to take the patient to the sta
ton and there treat him and send him
home without Understanding a trim to
the hospital; but owing to lack of ac-
commodatfon the patient had to be TAX
en- to the hospital and treated there.
Another feature of the position which
is necessary TO make the new denart-
ment run properly is to allow the sur
geon to have full charge and if there
are any mistakes made he will be re
sponsible for them. Being under the
chief of police. the surgeon is tied down
to the orders of the head Of the notice
department and would be Obliged to
act according to his suggestions instead
of doing as he thought best himself.
While DR., Shaw does not favor having
a hospital at the central station. h.
thinks. as does other doctors in Wor-
cester. that ii would be a good idea
and also a. removal of much unneces-
sary trouble from the civ hosnitar If he
was able to handle ali minor eases at
station
The demand and agitation for an am
bulance surgeon in Worcester has been
of LONG Standing ana u,hen Mavor
Dodge was firsf elected the railroad
trainrnen in fhe citv asked that an
ambulance surgeon be- appointed Nav
or Dodge agreed 10 consider their d.
rands and after a careif1,l considara-
tion If tha sreeastion thro,,eb tba city
government has had that noeition cra-
ated.
In former wears members of the, nolice
danart,,7a,1t ba1,e hea,, r,,,,o;,,a 90 ~, ~
ar1hillanca and driven NEioboel xenl
nedv Ofticer iThor1as IInrIeH ana I'll
ers have dona GOOD yorlr IN caeas
where the loss Of blood II NOT s+onned
would have res,,itad sa+aii,. omoey
Hurley ana driver Ixanrad1, ba,,a dona
work with tho to,,roir,,a+ th 90 x,,a,,I5
do credit m an IA 49,, ,ts,sio,o,e -
heine I,,t+to,,t Ply ~
cine +ba,r y,,e,o 1,.a+t,i y.
ant IN l,s,,,t r. poMeIiess "
urbara I-e,o.,.1 Sa9uoies anu otheI cases
eontiel ~ y, iAisuittne Mas 20
coses' az ,,1S, % LIS ~ suen
80 - ,,..,. y eiiits tliat eouio pe .iohs
,,ital ~ t's, ,,,t NY 70 lie clty nos
p tha , ~ ml.n u onaW traVehng Win
60 ;,,,t-- 10, q 1917 ease Woulu re-
49,, - oSAole the per
sor a'il ll,'a. Mot 5 pe removed.
by proper ana QUICK treatment OF
neaIt troupie, ne can pc saved II It
is oone IN Time, ana in this point the
services OF surgeon are indispensable.
but with SICK ambulance at the sta
tlon ana the services OF surgeon re-
CURED 10 De given up TO every case, he
IS very apt TO be away at times wnen
| he is most needed, thereby losing an OPP
portunity to do most good
HIS position as ambulance surgeon is
no sinecure, as many people would be
led TO believe, as he is apt to be needed
at any time during the day or night,
which practically leaves him on duty "a
hours in the day.