Evening star., 1939-02-10
Hazen Orders
Review Of Row
AT Ga||inger
Superintendent Sends
Long Report
To Randolph

Noting that Gallinger Hospita
might lose the services OF some out
standing volunteer physicians, Com
missioner Melvin C. Hazen today
ordered a review of the issue which
has arisen over jurisdiction between
resident and volunteer doctors on
duty at the municipal institution.
At the same time DR.. Edgar C.
Bocock, superintendent of Gallinger
forwarded a long report on the hos
pital to Chairman Randolph of the
House District Committee. Admit
ting that the hospital had many
shortcomings, DR.. Bocock said they
could all be remedied by increased
appropriations.
Mr.. HaZen announced the contro-
versy over physicians at Gallinger
would be discussed with 1t. Col
David McCoach, jr., engineer COM
missioner, as result of protests re-
ceived from DR.. Cloyd Heck Marvin,
president of George Washington
University, and the Very Rev. Arthur
OLeary, president of Georgetown
University.
The two educators conferred in
private late yesterday with Mr..
Hazen. Many physicians and in
ternes from their medical schools
are doing volunteer work at the hos
pital. The controversy arises from
the action taken last July by DR..
George c. Rutland, District health
officer, In placing newly appointed
staff physicians in charge of the five
major departments of the hospital.
Despite friction between the VOL
unteers. who number more than
100, and the staff, Assistant Health
Officer Daniel L. Heckinger, in
charge of hospital operations, said
he did not believe that more than
one or two of the volunteers would
leave Gallinger if the situation were
not changed However, Commits
sioner Hazen said he had contrary
information.
DR.. Marvin said he planned to
have another conference with
Father OLeary.
The new policy at Gallinger was
adopted by DR.. Rutland after the
United States Public Health Serv-
Ice, IN its survey of local health
facilities, suggested the need for a
Tightening up of the relationship
between the visiting staff and the
Gallinger resident staff. In keep
ing with this plan, the Commission
ers last July l appointed five new
physicians, who were placed in con-
troll OF various departments of the
municipal hospital. These were DR..
]. Ross Veal, who was placed in
charge Of the surgical department:
DR.. A. j. Sullivan, general medicine:
Dr.. L. K. Sweet, pediatrics; DR..
Charles P. Cake, tuberculosis, and
DR.. John Parks, obstetrics.
DR.. Bocock's report to the House
committee was an answer to a re-
quest Of Representative Randolph
for an explanation of charges that
the institution is overcrowded, that
its staff is undermanned and over
worked and that food served patients
Is below hospital standards.
All OF these allegations, DR.. Bocock
admitted, are true, with the excep-
tion OF the one relating to food. He
said there is some basis for this
complaint, but it is not as thor
oughly justifiable" as the others.
Sees Quick Rehabilitation.
Adequate appropriations, DR.. Bo-
cock pointed out, would allow Gal
linger to stop operating on hand
to mouth" basis, and promptly and
without difficulty assume the place
In the community which any mod
ern city hospital should occupy"
In transmitting DR.. Bocock's re-
port to Mr.. Randolph, DR.. Rutland
remarked:
If we can look toward the devel-
opment OF the local health service in
conformity with the recommended
tions made in the survey recently
made by the United States Public
Health Service, then I feel we may
hope to'see ultimately here in Wash
ington the type of public health
service that will be truly representa-
tive of this country's knowledge and
practice in public health
DR.. Bocock said the complaint that
wards are overcroWded and that the
tuberculosis houses ARE a disgrace
to city this size and type" is EN-
tirely justified and has been war
ranted for a number of years" At
present, he explained, there are more
than 200 patients with tuberculosis
occupying obsolete, antiquated frame
structures, erected about the time of
the Civil War. The overcrowding
complaint, however, he declared, will
soon be corrected.
AS a result of a P. w. A. grant
10 the District, DR.. Bocock pointed
out, two new buildings with a capac-
ity Of 525 patients are under con-
struction.
Answering a complaint as to in
adequacy of the nursing staff, at
tendants and laboratory technicians,
DR.. Bocock said:
Not only Is this complaint thor
oughly justif1able, but it has been
stated entirely too mildly to accu-
rately describe existing conditions"
A 5-Year-Old Problem.
For five years, Mr.. Randolph was
told, the nursing staff has steadily
and continually become inadequate
TO meet the institutions growing
demand to render satisfactory care
10 its patients"
1.-THE average citizen of Washing
ton," said DR.. Bocock, fails to rec
o9nize the fact that the city hospital
has grown to be an extremely large
and very active institution. Few
arc aware that the institution ad-
mits between so and 60 new in
dividuals daily; that last wear
slightly less than 1000 mothers de-
livered babies in the hospital, while
about 5000 surgical operations were
undertaken. During the year a to-
tai Of 1882 in-patients were re-
ceived. while approximately 1000 ad-
ditiOnal individuals received amhu-