Evening star., 1938-10-09

reception OF guests OF the sisters who
run the school,
Estimates Of the casualties vary, but
1t Is certain that the insects wreaked
full vengeance on more than half q
dozen children and took especially
heavy payment from Tommy and
Marian.
services to charity and part-pay pa
tients both inside the hospital, on beds,
known IS in-petients, and the clinic
visitors known ~ outpatients, shows
that the hospitals were left with the
unpaid load of more than q quarter Of
. million dollars.
The figures for both in-patients and
outpatients shows . grand total cost
OF $685.. .46S: part pay BY patients,
Sl33,547; paid by Community Chest,
S26s, ,3S4, leaving the hospitals to take
care Of the unpaid remainder Of
$26S,535
Services hy PhyicianA.
The medical service to both these
in-patients and outpatients was rem
dered BY members OF the medical pro-
fession without charge. BY this the
survey means that the service was
rendered to charity patients by the
attending stan Of the hospital. This
attending Staff Is chosen for ability
in the flelds in which they work, and
the physicians serve entirely without
remuneration. The attending staff
physicians, of course. bring their own
private patients to the hospital But
the public generally hiss the erroneous
idea. it was explained, that the at
tending stan Of physicians is paid by
the hospital.
The nine hospitals included in this
tabulation were: Childrens, Column
bia, Emergency. Episcopal GARFIELD,
GEORGETOWN, George Washington.
Homeopathic and Providence.
Sibley Hospital Is operating on an
Independent basis, and was reported
As undertaking to meet, within the
limits of available resources, part Of
the hospital costs of semi INDECENT
patients applying there for treatment.
Picture Is Ineomplete.
But the reports from these 60
called private or community hospitals
DO not complete the picture Of service
rendered to charity or part-pay pa
tients. A big load, Of course, was
carried in the unsupported institu-
tions OF Freedmen's Hospital for Col
ored, Gallinger Municipal Hospital and
other institutions under control Of the
Health Department Of the District of
Columbia.
The record on babies provides the
most complete picture because Of the
check on vital statistics figures. It
shows that there were ,2sO live births
1T the nine hospitals to which mater
nifty cases were sent by the Health
Security Administration, 744 At Freed
mems Hospital, TOO delivered At homes
by the home delivery services Of George
washington, Georgetown and Freed
mems Hospitals: 1856 1t Gallinser
This makes q total of 1870 births de-
hvered without charge for medical
care out Of the total Of 12,248 births
reported in the municipal govern
ment's vital statistics. This shows
more than 80 per cent Of the births
in the District during 1897 were At
tended by the medical profession with
out charge.
Charity and part-pay patients listed
As both in-patients and out patients
at Freedmen's. Gallinger and other
Health Department institutions bring
up the total to sisable percentages OF
the population. The population Of the
District Was estimated by the Bureau
Of the Census in 1897 to be $4,000
The total out-patient load piled up tc
s6,462, which was l3.9 per cent Of the
population. The impatient total load
was 30,479. who stayed 5l0,13e day,
In hospitals. This amounted to per.
son IN 20 of the District population.
Acts ~ Nerve Center.
The Health Security Administra-
tlon acts as the nerve center for
handling charity and part-pay cases
sent to it by the Community Chest
Tor medical care. The H. 8. A., former
iy known as the Medical.Denta]
Bureau and the Central Admitting
Bureau for Hospitals, helps both medi-
cally INDECENT patients, and also those
with so-called marginal income" It.
clients range all the way from the
lndigent who cannot pay for visits tc
4 doctors once, to those who require
no aid from taxes, Community Chest
hospitals, or free doctors service. b,It
are In such position that they can.
not pay the customary doctors ant
hospital fees. It il the declared inten.
ton OF the H. s. A. ito act as frient
and adviser to any one who needs heir
IN procuring any kind Of medical carr
or disqualification, and to see that M
one goes without necessary medical o.
hospital care because Of limited abilit,
to pay for it,
From 4 Spokesman for the American
Medical Association last week cam.
further indications that or4aniset
medicine not only stands its ground
but is looking confidently toward n,
| future.
Record That Il Glorious.
The profession looks back upon
record that Is glorious" declared Dr
Morris fiahb<in. editor Of the Journa
Of the A. NJ A., In speech 1T Chi.
caso. "A list Of achievements that i
phenomenal, consistent advance tha
cannot be duplicated by any othe
group devoted to any OF the interest
that engage mankind. The medica
profession stands proudly upon tina
record-perhaps too proudly, because
unaware Of the new forces that vouk
seize the leadership, enalave the sol.
diers in the battle against disease
turn the admiration Of the people int
dispArASement and contumely.
"Alarmists and psssimists shak
their heads sadly ovR the future a