Perth Amboy evening news., 1919-07-11
ON II RIGHT TRACK

clear themselves il IC hCChOh O"V
them as a body in connection with the establishment OF a clinic
here. The appointment of a committee to report on the mat
ter is the only honorable course open to the physicians. Il duo
committee will go into the matter thoroughly and avoid any
attempt at withdrawing we are sure that only good can re-
suit.
DR. Silk, in his letter as to what transpired at the meeting
at the East Jersey Club last week when the clinic proposition
was supposedly killed, mentioned as among the most pertinent
reasons for such action that cit was claimed by one Of the doc
tors that these. clinics were not really necessary; that the
United States Public Health Service statistics as to Venereai
diseases were padded and exaggerated and that he had it on
high authority that the purpose was mainly for creating lat
Jobs for some United States public health sanitarians" 9th
ers objected the letter goes on to say, ION the ground that II
will pauperize the public and that people who can well afford to
pay for services will get them free of charge, and so on"
The EVENING NEWS, in commenting on this, referred
to it as a "serious reflection that is placed upon the physicians
of the city," We further said that "the physicians certainly
have their good name to clear This, apparently, the physl-
clans have set about to do and lis to their credit that they nave
acted so promptly. We thoroughly believe that an injustice
has been done a great many physicians of the city, but as no
names were made public it was impossible to discriminate and
consequently all have felt the humiliation.
If the committee appointed by the medical association will
find out who was referred to when DR.. Silk in his letter said
tone of the DOCTORS declared that such clinics were not nee
essary; that the United States Public Health Service statistics
were padded and that the purpose of such clinics was merely
to make fat jobs for some United States public health SANTA
rians and then if the committee will find out who the Others
were who "objected on the ground that it would pauperize the
public and that people who can well afford topay for services
will get them free Of charge and so OF" it will have served its
purpose, and, should it see fit to make such names public, 1t
would thereby clear all the other physicians of the implication
We are sure that some doctors in this city would welcome
a clinic and dispensary whereby they would be relieved of the
many patieats- they are now called upon to treat and from
whom they know they will never be able to collect any money
"A free clinic and dispensary would take care of all such cases.
other cities have them and a great work is done thereby. e
DR.. Silk is deserving of a great deal of credit for the stand
go Y. 4la A. proc;dopt n? tbn Poard of Health. which |
board is on trial today before the people, he was duty bound to
show results. When he found that the projects he had in view
and which he had promised to put through were being killed
he rightly laid the whole situation before the public. 1t was
his duty as an official to do SO. Some unpleasant feeling has
resulted, to be sure, but It's notorious that nearly all important
projects are accomplished not without difficulty and some
times only by arousing personal feeling. Had DR.. Silk remained
silent and accepted the criticism that the Board of Health, OF
which he is the head, was accomplishing nothlng' the chnlc
project could never have survived the blow it received at the
meeting last week. By acting as he did, however, and taking
the public into his confidence, even at the expense of winning
the enmity of some of his colleagues in the medical profession,
he has succeeded in having the project revived and there is
now good prospects of success.
Iii only by coming out with the truth and calling a spade
a spade, as DR.. Wolfram did last fall and as DR.. Silk now has,
that things can be done, especially when there are schemers
at work in opposition who have not the courage to stand out IN
the open and fight.
AS for the need of cooperation on the part of the medi-
cal profession in controlling venereal diseases, the February
issue of sPubic Health News issued monthly by the Depart
ment of Health of the State of New Jersey, contains a letter a
copy of which was sent to a majority of the physicians throug-
out the state. A part of the letter is as follows:
aYou will find enclosed a number of circulars, report
blanks, and a manual for standard treatment of venereal dis
eases We feel that as a member of the medical profession. you
are deeply interested in the control of these diseases, and are
appealing to you to lend us your aid in our fight against them
1.-THE medical profession, being in the first line trenches
In this campaign, is in a position to do so much good that we
are asking that you give US your hearty cooperation
The article accompanying the letter says that free vener-
cal disease clinics, working in cooperation with the state de-
partment, have been established in important centers. 1t IS
apparent that the medical profession here has not given much
assistance toward establishing such a free clinic in this I'M
portant center thus far, but we hope that from now on 1T will
get behind the movement and show that it is not deserving of
The stigma that has been placed upon it.
Incidentally, speaking of free clinics, we know of at least
one local dentist who is greatly interested in establishing a