The Monmouth inquirer., 1925-07-23
MEDICAL ADVICE
BY RADIO AT SEA
Ships Without Doctors Get
Directions for Treat
ment of Sick.


In the officers quarters a man lies
tossing fitfully In his bunk, grooming
pitifully with each heave of the pitch
ing vessel. He gazes round the room
with glazed eyes. His face is pulled
from an inner swelling.
This ship, like numerous others that
sail the seven seas, carries no doctor.
Yet, here is case for a doctor It
may be a question Of life or death.
Medical advice is urgently needed.
What is to be donef
Fortunately, this freighter is
equipped with radio apparatus. And
that means much. The radio opera
tor is soon pounding his key, and pres
emily his call is picked up by another
vessel miles away, In reply to the I'M
written code Of the sea. This Is the
message:
SIS West Adrian A B G
To Captain SIS. Glenwood Castle:
Have man with intense swelling
right side face. Does not abate. Pa
tient delirious. Have you doctor on
board TO wireless treatment7
] A few moments later the radio OPP
orator picks up his pencil and jots
down this reply on radiogram blank:
i SIS. Glenwood Castle VII
To Captain West Adrian:
Keep patient in bed and treat face
with hot applications of water; II not
successful paint inside of jaw with
80 e.
CAPTAIN
J A few hours later the captain adj
vises the distant doctor: The patient
has been relieved and is resting as
well as may be expected. An ex-
change of radiograms and with 1t the
probable result of a life saved.
! SIS West Adrian A. 3 G
To Captain Glenwood Castle:
Patient resting easily after treat
ments and pain greatly relieved. Please
accept my compliments and thanks.
CAPTAIN.
That is the significant story behind
the radio medical service.
Radio Medical Service.
Over four years ago the radio medi-
cal service had its modest beginning
in an idea of Captain Huntington,
chief Of the medical and frst-aid
course for seamen at the Seamen's
Church institute in New York. He de-
scribed his plan to Doctor Mansfield,
in charge of the institute, who imme-
diately saw In It a practical and hui
name service.
On November 8, 1920, a special ra-
dio telegraph station license WITH the
call letters KDKF was issued to she
institute. Soon KDKF began to dis
seminate medical service to ships In
its vicinity. from 8 a. m. till 5 p. m.
during which period the institutes doc
tor was on duty. The idea proved
highly practicable. KDKF soon re
ceived the right-of-way, so to speak
over all calls except the S. o. S. of
ships in distress. And soon it became
manifest to all In touch with the de-
yelopment that the radio medical serv-
ice must be continuous for "a hours
a day. SO, on April 20, 1921, KDKF
was licensed to operate "a hours a day.
The day and night service was made
possible when the public health serv-
ice took an active interest In the In
stitute's work and offered the services
of its staff at the Marine hospital on
Hudson street, SO as to furnish med
ical advice by night as well as by day.
A direct telephone connection was
made between the institute and the
hospital, and in this manner medical
information was now on tap for the
lonely steamer within ready reach Of
New York.
One more obstacle still confronted
this service, and that was the Ques-
tion of radio range. The radio trans
Initter at the institute was not power
full enough to reach ships at any con-
siderable distance from New York, so
that in many cases it became neces-
sary to relay the messages. The med
zeal service had grown all the while
and increased its scope of usefulness,
but the Seaman's Church institute did
not nossess the funds for the equip
ment TO carry on the work which had
Te0C0GQ SuCD u vast RAORSASAOAA
At this stage in the development Of
the radio medical service, the matter
was brought to the attention Of the
Radio Corporation of America, which
Immediately gave the use Of its sta
tions free Of charge and instructed its
operators to be constantly on the
watch for calls for medical aid. Thus
the radio medical service passed out
of the narrow confines of the little
transmitter Of the Seamen's Church
institute and became available through
large network of coastal radio tele-
rraDh stations. Since that time the
CORPORATION, In cooperation with the
nublic health hospitals at New York
and other ports, has been handling
! this radio medical service
Service Becomes International.
IN the course Of its rapid expansion
tho service has taken on an interna-
t,onal aspect. On June 7, 1923, 1t was