The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1917-03-20
Doctors
EDITOR THE TINES:


Why not give the doctors what
is coming to them? A friend OF
mine took her little girl to DR..
H. =, because abe had been
troubled with earache. He advis-
ed her to remove her tonsils, and
of course the mother wanted to do
what was right.
So she consented to have 1t done
after he assured her that 1t was
very minor operation, and that 1t
would not be necessary to keep
the child out of school more than
a day.
They went to the hospital and
the child was on the operating
table and partly under the influ-
ence of ether when she began to
fight against taking 1t.
II the mother had not been
there to interfere, the nurse, who
was giving the ether, would have
chicken the child to stop Its
screaming and crying to get up.
OF course that unnerved the
mother, and she made them let her
up.
The mother tried reasoning
with her but she was so excited
and seemed to have such a dread
of the operation that the mother
decided not to have it done.
DR.. II. was raging about the
room trying to get the mother to
allow them to overpower the
child, and when she would not, he
tried to take the child out of the
mothers hands by force.
When she would not stand for
that, then he did go wild.
You can just imagine what that
mother suffered when she finally
let them take the child and go
ahead with the operation. While
she stood outside of the room, a
nurse told her that It was taking
them more than as long again to
do the work as it usually took 9th
er doctors, and limited that there
was danger.
Then to have DR.. H. come out
and tell her that 1t was the worst
case he had ever had, and how she
had hemmorhaged from every
place they had touched. And that
they had had to get down into the
throat and gather up and tie the
ends of the cut arteries.
You may be sure the mother
didn't feel very kindly towards
him after his overbearing treat
ment OF her. Then on going back
into the operating room to learn
that DR.. H. had not done the oper-
alton at all!
But without as much as saying
by your leave, he had called in
DR.. w. and he had cut her tonsiIs
in such manner that she had lost
great quantities of blood, pulled
out a back double tooth and left
her throat In such a raw state
that for a while she could neither
eat or sleep for the terrible pain
she suffered. And it was three
weeks before her throat was en-
tirely healed.
But 1t seems these doctors were
not satisfied with the worry and
suffering they had caused. DR.. H.
positively refused to settled with
these people, though the mother
went to his office and tried to get
him to set price and she would
have paid any reasonable amount
in cash.
He informed her that he was his
own boss, and had practiced in
this town long enough that he
could charge whatever price he
pleased. but refused to say what
that might be. He ordered her
from his office. telling her she
would have to settled with DR.. w.
who had already sent in his bill
for $50, just twice the amount
other doctors are charging for the
same kind of work.
Now can someone tell me Is Il
possible DR.. w. can send in a bill
and compel these people to nav Il.
when they did not know that he
was going to operate upon their
child until it was all over. and a
very unsatisfactory operation at
that? never heard of such a
case before but 1t seems to me that
since Dr.. H. brought another doc
tor into the case after advising
the operation and taking the case
himself, should be left to settle
with that doctor.
They are honest peace-loving
people and owe no one. Now n
those doctors can work that kind
OF game on one they will try II
on others. And you or someone
dear to you may fall a victim to
them next. If a doctor can do
work for you without your con-
sent or knowledge and collect an
exorbitant fee, why can't IL be
done in any other business, or is
there one set of laws for doctors
and another one for other people?
IL everyone in Tacoma who has
had unpleasant experiences with
some doctor, will write the edi-
tor and / am sure we will find
some very interesting reading. I
would like to take all that the edi-
tor cannot publish and read them
before the women's clubs all over
the city. / think that IL we get
together on this matter we can
soon show some of these would
be specialists where to head In
at"
By paying more attention to