The evening herald., 1917-07-07
SHOitTAGE on pOCTOltS
IN UNITED STATES ~
WARNING or ENpi:ttr.


, - a hours Yol have them lying there. |
Are YOU going Ia leaV,s them where
they lie? Colonel +. II. Goodwin.
Royal Army Medical Corps WIS talk
lng To a group OF American physicians
IN this city last week. The answer
already given hv the English doctors
to his question was grimly indicated
by Colonel Goodwin. where will we
get more Doctors" he said I'VE
haven't got them. That's what itI
comes to"
But the appalling havoc that the
war has wrought among the doctors
~ not only felt by the army. the civil
ian population az home IN England il
also suffering from lack of medical
attention. The outbreak Of an epi-
demic ANYTHING like the intantile
paralysis plague that swept over a
portion of the United States last year
would find England in y critical con-
dition. Doubtless the other warning
nations are IN the same uneasy situd-
ition.
The entry of the United states in
TO The great struggle is going 10 ppt
us In the same position as are Eng
land and presumably the other COM
batants. warns pr. otto =. Geier OF
lCincinnati. chairman of the Preventive
Medicine section Of the American
lMedicsd Association. In enlarging
upon the situation he continued Al
ready an impressive number VI our
doctors have gone to- the front many
lof them leaders of the profession II
H. only an indication of the response
that Will be made hS the medical pro
fession when our soldiers are actually
sent into the trenches II is newt.
able that the medical resources Of
our country will be drained lust a.
have been the medical resources "
England
In sizing up tho problem before
us ID must be remembered that this
depletion of our medical forces comes
at % tim" when. because Of the fear
ful destruction nf national man-poN- %
or in combat 10 will he particularly
necessary To- work Tor the conservation
of health At home
There ~ no problom Of greater
urgency than .hts conservation of our
national health National health
means GO store up energy for the
, great industrial struggle that Is 'u
come with the cossatiun Of the war
with q greater need for health ,un-
scryutiuu aud seriously lessencd
. medical force. Il goes without saying
that nov more than ever It Is uec'
essary tu adopt the most economic
method - combating disease. This b.
TO he found IN thoroughly organizing
and stirring into activity an those
y forces that tend toward he pres"I'
tion NJ disease.
In the present cmerEencS the gen.
! oril public should he reused to the
necessity 81 greater activity than even
] before M swat the fly campaigns IN
+ neigh hhorhood clean up ana brush an
work IN ridding the community of all
/. mosquito pools. in thorough
. Is enforcing the don't spit mandate
. Every person who sells. handles, o'
, buys food should see That 1t is Kept
% free from contamination. Tine pur'
lty of water supply and the sanitar'
disposal Of ScwJg" should all be tarc'
mlly looked after.
These activities, OF course should
, not %, left solely t. the individual.
- town county ana state should nl
' co-operute Tha, economy iu puhht
. health activities may prove the most
u expensive kind u parnmony is all
u ways true. but the truth of Il Is more
APT To- be- brought hum" uoW than
. cycr before These lctiNitie-,, how
g ever. VIII hoy no means meet our re-
u uuircmcnts for the conservation ~
e public health That viii he done onll
= hy the contamination uf those change
J., that have gradually been taking place
P. In the medical profession And II
i tu bee hoped that the present emer'
q, gcncy will work this consummation.
:, "lu the strikngly evolutionary pro.
" ,grams OF the twentieth century u'
group of individuals has had rs old.
" Tim, relationships more radicals
changed than have the physicians
u Mlny factor. social amt economic
F." have been responsible" some "t th"-'
evolutionary .hauRes hay" prompts
n ,aud voluntarily come from within th'
De- profession. others hay" been forced
+. upon rho profession.
MI "it is evident that the doctors h4E'
4. FOR an tame passed boyuud the stag
# NJ the absolutely individual and per
souu relationship ui family physician
-. 'aud patient tu one where the com
y, munit, steps 800 iu safeguard it-'l
. dgaiu-i any t,u~, OF the old rit'uW
srriu.d relationship. ana demands col
lcctIyc action iu matters pt health f."
" thc benefit 81 an
~ The concentration of pupulat,n
81 in ri'ios has developed problems n'
% ,oud the ooutruI uf ui" private phys
.- i,ian WIN density of population
Il nav, come the tenement bad housing
.e ana iiEiup conditions. tuh"r' ul"si'
Ial,ohuu-m. Nsucroal diseases, poverty
E. ldrluuu,n... and crime. The develop
~ mout Of industry. with Us uc'upHiI"u'
Al hazards ht. created another -"ii'
it Of h,o'th mpairmouts. which u
d famuy physician may hayc the know
edge tu alleviate. uut the prcFoutI"
.- of which is entirely ncN"ud ma '"n
10 lrol
A EVERY social disorder has mcdI
-, IrtI aspect iu .hr neglect ot the mN
of q honlth, mental and phy ,ical state
n th,. medical profession is 90 tiil li
pla,o iu the new order 90 things
Imust toapl. t.a' its Nurk Is tund'
" mrivpI tu tho solution oi social prom
lrms. it must realize th" necessity Z"
+" community 'hiukuu. community "'
+" ton.
BE- Sow lrt .I- see what ar" the need
,e nf tine udivIu-pl II wc can doNiH
ID . proginm that VIII meet hi- uo'd
De- IL can probably ho extended advantage