Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1913-10-23
THE CONSERVATION Of HEALTH
DR.. Tinkbam Says Physicians should
lie Engaged to Keep People We'll In
stead of Curing Them when Sick.

| DIR. H. G. Tinkham, dean of the medical
college, spoke Sunday before the
Brotherhood of the First Church on the
subject of conservation of health.
| DR.. Tinkham called attention at the
outset to the fact that at present the
whole starting of the agencies Of healing
and the determination whether or not
treatment is necessary is left to persons
unacquaintcd with medicine and entirely
without training or experience. Instead
| OF leaving 1t to the judgment of the head
of the household to call in the doctor.
he said physicians to do the best work
ought to be engaged at n reasona Bile an
nual retainer to keep people well. Health
boards operate on the principle of pre-
venting disease, but the family physician
could do more because he goes right into
the family. DIR. Tinkham predicted that
we should see some day the family
physician given chance to apply his
skill preventing disease in his patients
instead Of merely being called in at a
late hour to cure It,
Or Tinkham proceeded TO take IN a
number of diseases and to show what
progress had been made I'm conservation
or health with reference to each of these
ailments. lie also spoke I'm passing of
entails. He said in this connection that
the most potent cause OF Turkish defeat
in the recent Balkan war was the un-
sanitary condition of the Turkish camps
and the consequent ravages of disease
within them Likewise in the war be-
tween Japan and Russia, the great point
of advantage of the Japanese over the
Russians lay In their excellentlN sanitary
camps. The smallpox epidemic which
afflicted Philadelphia a number of years
ago IS estimated to have cost $50. 600 oDO
In the damage It did. while vaccine sta
tons and tho vaccination work necessary
to have headed it off would have cost
only s7cO.oOo
smallpox as scourgu. he said. has
practically ceased to exist Vaccination
has made possible its prevention. In the
Philippines only few years ago millions
died yearly from the raVagcs Of smallpox
Thanks to widespread vaccination by the
authorities OF the United States. there
has not been a single death from small
poN during the past four years
Yellow fever and malaria, each car
ricd by special kind Of mosquito, have
been found prevcntabc by the destruc-
tion Of the mosquitoes Panama was
one" p"st-holc. Our medical authorities
have made It the hcalthiest place in the
world. Tho dcath-ratc in Panama Is only
ten to tho one thousand of popula-
ton. Tho death-rate in Burlington
which prdes itself on being health
resort--is seventeen per thousand The
governor Of Porto Rico is spending $40
oN annually in the fight against the
hookworm. And he does this because the
increased efficiency Of healthy people
will make up the difference many times
over in increased prosperity. Typhoid is
a disease prcvcntablc by boiling the
water and enforcing cleanliness in the
production Of foods especially milk It
is also preventabc now by vaccination
And Yet it is estimated to cost the State
of West Virginia Sl0,O00.WO yearly by its
ravages. and Indiana saOO0NO Consump-
ton costs the nation yearly something
like 23o,0OO,0CO. 1t ran he controlled only
when splitting under circumstances where
1t Is possible for the sputum to dry and
become part of the dust which everyone
inhales is completely prohibited
DR. Tinkham also dwelt Interestingly |
on the great danger and damage from
diseases like whoopng cough and !
measles These are commonly thought |
of as harmless, but actually show |
enormous death-rates. He also dwelt on |
the problem Of infant r,ortalty.
The prevention Of disease has very lit |
tie connection with its cure Prevention |
: accomplished in practically every case |
by destroying the carrier of the disease |
The part played in the stamping out of |
diseases by cures of those who are sick |
with them is almost ininiteslmal.