Evening star., 1937-11-09
RUTLAND REGRETS
PERSONNEL LACK
More Doctors and Nurses
in D. c. Bureaus Held
Vital to Results.

Need Of increased nursing person.
mel and physicians to combat and
prevent diseases was stressed by Dis
trict Health Officer George C. Ruh-
land and five Of his bureau chiefs
at a luncheon meeting of the Coun-
Gil of Social Agencies in the Young
Women's Christian Association Build
ing yesterday.
DR.. Rutland declared "the agen-
cies do the best they can with in
adequate stats and housing facili-
ties
His program called for doing away
with beds in corridors" Of hospitals,
establishment of . place for con-
valescents SO that hospital beds might
be used to accommodate persons
needing treatment, extension of the
home" service to do away with un-
necessary institutionalizing Of patients,
establishment Of an agency which
would see that persons needing medi-
cal treatment would be serviced and
establishment Of centers for treat
ment Of diseases In the areas where
they prevail most.
ut is hoped that We can secure
the old tuberculosis Hospital at Four
teenth and Upshur streets NV. for
. home for convalescents," DR.. Ruh-
land said. He expressed the opinion
1T would be . mistake to use this
building for treatment Of chronics."
Unified Service Obtained.
In answer to . question by Jesse
c. Suter as to what advantage ac-
crues to the community from the
recent transfer by legislation of the
public hospitals from the Board of
Public Welfare to the Health De-
partment DR.. Ruhland explained that
q more unified service is obtained.
The District does not begin to COM
pare with other cities Of its size in
the per capita expenditures in tight
ing and preventing diseases, DR.. Rub
land replied IN answer to another
query.
DR.. D. L. Seckinger, assistant Dis
trict health ofncer, declared all Of
the departments lack suficient per-
sonnel.
Nursing facilities are only one
half what they should be-" he said
I'VE have about $50 nurses and need
3o0" He added further that I'VE
are spending about 81 cents per capita
in the health program and should
be spending about 1880"
DR.. Ella Oppenheimer, director Of
the Bureau of Maternal and Child
Welfare, pointed out that prenatal
care Of mothers is handicapped by
shortage of nurses, as was the
school clinic work because of the
large numbers Of children to be ex-
amined. DR.. Oppenheimer stressed
the importance Of examining pre-
school children, which work also is
handicapped.
Nurses are Of . necessity being
used to do clerical work, DR.. A. Bark
lie Coulter, director of the Tubercu-
losis Bureau, declared in = talk on
Preventing Tuberculosis.
Many Oppose Republication.
III. SOulUCK SAA0 OAlC VI t4tS Sltu8~
tions his bureau was up against was
that only one person in three recon-
mended for hospital treatment would
enter the institutions.
Figures show that in 1885 about
70 per cent of the patients admitted
for treatment Of tuberculosis at Gal
lnger Hospital left against the advice
Of physicians" There were 662
deaths in that year, he said.
DR.. Coulter praised the District
tuberculosis Association. pointing out
that 1t pays for the services Of four
secretaries and doctor to aid US in
this work"
Mrs. Josephine Prescott, director
Of nursing, explained the work Of
public health nurses. She said the
shortage of nurses permitted only
1876 per cent Of the persons on record
for treatment to be contacted.
DR.. Thomas Thompson, director Of
the vcnereal disease service, said his
branch needed more physicians, cleri-
cal help, nurses and money for ex-
pensive drugs and other necessities.
The council approved the accept
ance Of the Zonta Club Of Washing
ton as . member agency.