The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1905-08-16
No WRIT TEN
RULES EXIST
Peculiar Condition of
Affairs in Medical Ex.
aiming Board.

The Board of Medical Examiners ha:
no written rules" said DR.. George Her
bert to Acting Governor Atkinson yes
terday. There is no such thing il
existence
And SO that story about the inner
|itanceof the written rule that physicians
shall take their examination, for license
TO practice, in the English language is
a fairy tale and the regulation is a
regulation that the Board of Examin.
ers enforces without ever having writ
ten it down. 1t has not even the de-
gree of responsibility that it might
have got from having been writ
ten long ago. DR.. Judd, by the
way, is quoted as authority for the
statement that the rule about language
was an inheritance from former boards
of examiners. DR.. Judd is likewise
given as authority for the. statement
that there is such a rule-but that by
the way. seems to be pretty generally
admitted. And DR.. Judd and Dr. Her.
bert are both right, in all probability,
because rule may be a rule-and en-
forced. too-even although it is not
written down.
The question of the existence of this
particular rule has arisen because, pri-
marily, the Acting Governor had asked
of Medical Examiners. OF course, if
the board had any rules. the Acting
Governor would be entitled to see them.
even if he was not entitled to approve
them upon adoption, or to amend them
after adoption. The Acting Governor
found some little difficulty in getting
tient. 1t was at this point DR. Herbert
gave the information that there wers
no written rules of the Board of Medf-
cal Examiners.
OF course. if there were no written
rules, the Acting Governor could not
see them. 1t would take a man of
keener vision even than Governor At
kinson to see a set of rules that is held
inside the heads of three doctors. Be-
sides. the doctors might change their
minds. Doctors often do.
Secondly, the question of the exist
ence of the rule about the examination
in English has arisen because the Jap
anese in Hawaii, who form the larger
Of tla taf Let
ed, and many people think with JUS
tice, because so long as that rule was
Japanese doctors who might
be thoroughly qualified to practice
but who were not conversant
with the English language. would be
1ebarred from practice, and the Japan
ese who could not or might not want 10
make their physical ills known to an
English doctor, would be cut off from
he chance of medical assistance in
ime of sickness. Moreover, many Jap
snese-in fact, most Japanese-could
lot make their ills properly understood
n English, and a man with cramp
olic might be treated for appendicitis,
md neither man nor doctor be the
after the operation.
More than that, a rule of that kind
would not only keep out japanese doc
ors, against whom it was mainly aim
d. but any other doctor who was not
BILE to speak English, no matter what
is professional qualifications and
tanding might be. But, of course. If
here is no such rule, if there are no
ules at all excepting such rules as the
card may happen to think of and
nforce from time to time, the status
f the whole matter changes. Incl
perhaps it is time that there
ere rules, sane rules, and that the
esident of the Board of Health was
dyised of them. Because there is rea-
,n to believe that he did not know
lere We're no written rules of the Board
: Examiners.
The President of the Board of Health
after Japanese who are practicing
without authorization, and all
pod citizens will hope that he catches
lem But when be does catch then.
,rhaps the Board of Medical Examin-
s may be induced to think up rule
lat will give the men who are caught
chance to prove whether they are en-
led to practice medicine, leaving their
lguistic accomplishments aside for the
me- Because. really, it does not mat
r what language a doctor speaks, so
ng as he can speak yours.
incidentally to this whole subject, the
awaiian Medical Association has
ken action, appointing Drs. judd,
ayson and Cooper a committee to
nsider the problem of examining ap-
icants for license to practice medi-
10 So il will be seen that the taking
of the matter by the high authori-
g has borne early fruit.
WANTS HOME WITH LEPERS.