Evening star., 1941-04-07
Chilean Arrives Here to Study
New Medical Discoveries
DR.. RuuI Morales
Cites Health Work
In Own Country
BY MANUEL VEGA.

DR.. Raul Morales, a young ply
sician and outstanding leader of the
Radical party of Chile, has come
to Washington for a few days.
Charming, intelligent and active,
DR.. Morales divides his time between
his professional duties and his love
for politics.
During his several terms as Rep
resentative in Congress, he has been
an ardent defender of social legis-
lation in Chile, together with an
other eminent doctor who has con-
tributed greatly to the program, DR..
Cruz-Coke, prominent young
member of the Conservative party
of Chile and also an artist. For
tunately the political parties of Chile
are united as to their program OF
social work with the purpose of i'm
proving health conditions and the
standard of living of the working
classes.
Employe Funds Set Up.
In Chile all employees must be
contributors to some of the large
the Obligatory Insurance Fund, for
laborers; the Fund for Employees of
Private Business Enterprises, and
the National Fund for Public En-
ployeS and Journalists. Of these
three institutions. the second is the
only one which inforces the pre-
ventive medicine law, prepared by
nv rrron ho MIN
lister of Public Health. AS the
doctor in charge of the preventive
medicine service of this fund, Dr.
Morales can speak with authority
on the law, the first of its kind to
be promulgated in South America.
In my opinion" DR.. Morales
said. there are four fundamental
aspects of the Cruz-Coke law: First,
is a compulsory physical examina-
ton for every employe to deter
mine if he suffers from any of the
social diseases in their early stages
when they are not easily recognized
by the patient.
tuberculosis Drive Cited.
Second is an anti-tuberculoSiS
campaign. providing for a rest pc
riod for the employe, without loss
of Job and with full salary paid by
the fund The Medical Service has
sanatoriums at high and low alti-
tudes for appropriate treatment.
When I was Congressman I
worked in the House and easily Sc
cured the passage of law compile
mentary to the Cruz-Coke law, ac-
cording to which no employer can
discharge an employe for six
months after his rest period.
The third aspect is an anti
syphilis campaign The fund fur
niShes medical attention and medi-
cines absolutely free for the neces-
sary treatment.
The last aspect is attention to
cardiovascular conditions Free
medicine is also furnished for these
cases and, when necessary, a pre-
ventive rest period.
Purpose of Law Is Clear.
In few words, the purpose of
the law could not be clearer: to COM
bat social diseases, inasmuch as such
diseases as diabetes, pneumonia and
eczema do not affect the commu-
nifty as a whole. The first step is to
prevent contagion. These diseases,
until recently thought to be incur
able, are entirely durable now if
they are discovered in their early
stages"
And what is the purpose of your
trip to the United States?" the doc
tor was asked.
My trip has two fundamental
purposes: first. to secure some in
dispensable equipment; secondly, to
study the most recent discoveries of
science in the States. l have or
dered two mobile units for health
examinations. They will be We
hicles equipped with high powered
X-ray equipment, clinical labora-
tories, electric cardiographs and so
forth.
Want All People Helped.
I'VE in Chile desire that the bene-