The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1901-11-07
SCORES THEM ALL
City Physician Judd Makes
Some Plain Charges.
County Does Not Care For the
INDECENT Sick.
NEED A DISPENSARY.
Only by This Means Can Emer-
gency Cases Be Treated.
Tells How County Commission
ers Treated His Claim.
Jealous of Their Authority Over
County Doctor.
NEED A DISPENSARY.

DIR. Corban E. Judd. city physician,
Endorses the new free dispensary 10
which the city gives $25 a month. He
says:
Il admit that the city is practically
paying twice for the same service. The
city helps pay the county doctor for
taking care of the needy, and it is now
paying the free dispensary S25 month
for doing the same thing. But the fact
is that the county doctor is of no value
whatever to the poor of the city. In
order to give relief to the poor, we must
have a free dispensary. There is so
much red tape about the county physi-
clan business that the position might
about as we'll be abolished.
The present county physician is DR..
C. W. Ellinger. He submitted bid n
competition with other physicians, for
the job of county physician His bid
was the lowest, and it was accepted
He received $195 a year for his work.
DR.. Judd does not like Dr. Ellinger's
methods, and does not hesitate to say
so. Neither does DR.. Judd approve Of
the system used by the county commits
sioners and the poor commissioner in
dispensing medical aid to the poor.
emergency, j
1.-THE county physician is OF no value
whatever There is no extra money in
it for him to get out in the middle of
the night to attend an emergency case,
and he won't do it if he can help it,
"A short time ago boy was
over by train short distance outside
of Topeka He was brought here in a
dying condition. The officers telephon-
ed to DR.. Ellinger's home, and explain
ed that dying boy was needing the aid
of the doctor at once A woman was at
the other end of the telephone She
asked, Is it a county case?' The Off
GERS told her it was. She said, Wait a
moment Then the officer, who kept
his ear to the phone, heard DR.. Ellinger
tell the woman to say to the officers
that he was not at home. The woman
did she was told. The officers at the
police station will swear to the truth of
this They then called me up, and told
me that they needed a doctor at once,
and said they could not get the county
physician 1 went down and saved the
boys life.
Il worked with that boy from mid
night till o'clock in the morning, and
turned in a bill to the county commits
sioners for $40 for my services. In an
ordinary case I should have charged
$25- The poor commissioner refused to
O. K my bill, because he said that he
did not order me to attend the case. 1
explained the situation to the county
derStand by one of them that in case
should use my influence to give GER
tain man a job on the sanitary force,
he would see that my bill was paid. I
did not propose to do business that
way, and did not appoint his man.
When the time came for acting upon
my BILL what do you suppose the COM
missioners allowed me? They cut down
my bill to s.. SOL
THE fact of the case isl continued
DIR. Judd, that the poor commissioner
and county commissioners are all jeal-
Gus of the power which they have to
order the county physician to act ac-
cording to their Instructions They
want all his actions to be ordered by
themselves, and will not hold him Gull
pable for refusing to act without sucn
an order This places in their hands
considerable power of a certain kind.
The business of the city physician is
not to attend general cases of sickness,
but it is to look after the sanitary reg
ulattons, cOnta giOuS diseases, and act as
secretary of the board of health. The
city physician is supposed only to at
tend policemen and firemen employed
by the city. Several times. however,
have attended emergency cases where
there seemed to be no prospect of get
ting the county physician before the
patient would die. Putting the power
hands of the poor commissioner and
county commissioners fixes it so that
the county physician is of the least pos
sible value to the poor of the county.
If we have to hunt up the poor COM
missioner and get his order, and then
go out in the country and hunt up the
county commissioners and get their or
ders before the services of the county
physician are available, it is easy to
see how much good the county physi-
clan can do in emergency cases.
DIR. Judd was asked to state what he
would do about the cutting off of the
$50 month which the city has been al
lowing him for care of smallpox cases.
Il will not resign said DIR. Judd. Il
think that when the smallpox begins, if
1t does again, that the council will treat
me fairly in the matter. / never have
had any intention of trying to collect
the $50 a month when there are no
smallpox cases in town. My predeces-
sor, DR.. Hogeboom, informed me that
the council allowed the $50 a month for
the care of smallpox, the same amount
to be paid whether there was one case
Or a hundred. 1 have been collecting it
on that principle"
w. R. C. OFFICERS.