The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1919-02-11
TOPEKA STATE JOURNAL
INFORM ALTON
BUREAU
FREDERIC J. HAsxIN. Director.
Washington. D. C.
THE FLYING DOCTOR.
Washington. D. C.


Washington, D. c., Feb. Sat
lonely farm on the coast Of North
Carolina, not far from Cape Hatteras,
a man lay seriously i'll of the influ-
enza. The disease was epidemic all
up and down the coast, and constantly
spreading. Two people in the neigh
borhood had already died. 1t was
over fifty miles to the town of Man
teo, where the nearest doctor lived;
the trip took many hours by boat and
was impossible by the roads, which
were deep in mud. The man had
sent a telegram, asking for help, but
he had little hope that help would
come. Indeed, he had little hope of
any kind. There was apparently
nothing for him to do but lie there
and let the disease take its course
unchecked.
Suddenly his ears were filled with
a roar, as of mighty wings. His wife
ran to the door and opened it. Out
over the blue waters of the bay he
saw a great flying machine-saw 1t
descend in a long swift rush to the
blue water, throwing clouds of white
later. when a boat had put Quito
the strange craft, a doctor of the
United States pubic health service
was taking his temperature and pre-
pairing medicine at his bedside. He
was also promising that he would "be
back soon" just as tho his office were
around the corner instead of fifty
miles across a barren wilderness.
This is no fairy tale, but an Incl
dent which actually happened a few
weeks ago. 1t is a dramatic illustra-
ton of how the airplane may be used
for practical ends in time Of peace. 1t
is also a good example of how the
government, by rendering medical aid
where private doctors and hospitals
cannot or will not do so, may save
life.
The barren coastal country of North
Carolina, where this government doc
tor made his aerial visits, has total
population of about four thousand
These people were scattered up and
down a strip of sand and swamp a
hundred miles long. There is no way
of getting from point to point except
by boat. The metropolis of the region
is Elizabeth City, and the town of
next importance is Manteo.
Now two hundred of the inha bitants
of this strip of dangerous coast are
United States coast guards. They are
stationed at fourteen coast guard sta
lions, which are seven or eight miles
apart. One of the duties of the United
States public health service is to care
for the health of all of the coast
guards. In this particular case it
discharges its duty by making con-
tract with a doctor living in Mafhteo
to visit periodically the men in the
fourteen stations and attend to their
ills.
But when a large part of all these
coast guards came down with the flu,
and when in addition. the contract sur
geon was fully occupied with his civil
ian cases, a plea for aid was sent to
the public health headquarters here in
Washington, and DIR. c. Michel was
sent to Manteo to render what aid he
could.
This certainly seemed little to him
when he saw the deselate wilderness
! in which his prospective patients lived
He could not possibly visit them all in
month with the transportation facili-
| ties at his disposal; they would be all
dead or well before he had seen half
| of them.
| But Doctor Michel was a man OF
resource. And he had the authority
of the United States government at his
BACK. Also. he did not have to make
profit on the medical attention he
would give these coast jewellers. He
had merely to save their lives. Thai
Is one advantage about a government
doctor. He can proceed on the as
sumption that human life is worth
| to the state whatever it costs to
| save it.
Doctor Michel went to the nava
l -
credentials, and explained that as
representative of the United State
Public Health Service, he wanted the
United States navy to provide him will
transportation which would enabl'
| HIM to attend two hundred cases O
flu scattered up and down one hun
dred miles of roadless coast line. II
other words. he wanted some kind o
a flying machine. Nothing else coulC
possibly serve
The commandant compiled irnmedi
ately by placing at the doctors dis
posal two naval hydro-aeroplanes
Each of them was equipped with
liberty motor of AS horsepower, wa
of the biplane type. had a single pro
pellor and seated three men. One o
the machines proved to be out of or
der. but the other worked to perfec
ton. In addition to the doctor, it car
ried Ensign G. w. Grader. who acte,
as pilot, and Machint Nadeau.
The machine started from Mantle
one morning, visited every one of tn
coast guard stations. which were, O
course, the doctors first care, and re
turned to MCnteo the same afternoon
This round trip would have takel
three days by boat under the mos
favorable circumstances.
On the next day the doctor wante,
to go to Elizabeth City, the distric
headquarters of the coast guard. t
report on the condition of the mer
EnzaDeth City was fifty miles away
and it took six hours to get there b.
boat. The doctor lost exactly 3S min
utes of his valuable time making thi
journey by airplane.
On the third day the doctor an
swered all of the calls for help tina
had come in by telegraph from tn
!; civilians in the surrounding country
, distributed medicines to them. an
again made the round of all fourtee
coast guard stations. He was now at
. tending two hundred patients and do
ing so as regularly as tho he had bee
city doctor attending city patient.
Only two of the patients died.
This story might we'll be cited as a
argument for Strengthening the med
ical forces of the government. Non
but a government doctor could DOS
sibly have handled that narticnlar sill