Evening star., 1942-03-25
'CoddIinq' and Health

Commissioner Guy Mason is op-
posed to a program OF physical At
ness In the schools which involves
periodic physical and dental exami-
nation Of high school children. His
views are set forth elsewhere in to-
days Star. The Commissioner re-
CARDS expansion OF physical and
dental examination to junior and
senior high school children as wet
nursing" and "coddling." Detection
and correction Of physical defects In
children of high school age, he says,
are Jobs for the parents and family
physician. If the children have not
been taught what is good for them
by the time they reach high school,
Mr.. Mason does not believe 1t is the
function Of the community to teach
them.
The Commissioner expressed, In
his own way, what undoubtedly is
one point Of view possibly shared by
many others. But is 1t a valid point
OF view? What has 1t accomplished
In the past? It has contributed,
without doubt, to the conditions ex-
posed by rejection Of men for the
draft. Medical men say the per-
centage of reflections for the Army,
in a Nation which Is better fed,
clothed and housed than any nation
on earth, is a major scandal. For"
the statistics show that the majority
of reflections were for causes which
were ascertainable and remediable.
Furthermore, examinations Of chill
dren in the schools have revealed
the same pattern of physical defects
which showed itself in the rejection
of older men for the Army.
What Is the answer? Should
things be left as they are, or should
there be inaugurated system Of
periodic physical and dental exami-
nation Of children in the schools in
an effort to prevent the same type
of defects which draft reflections re-
vealed? Experiments already made
In Washington indicate the possibil-
tiles Of positive action. At Coolidge
High School, more than 10 per cent
of defects uncovered by medical
examination were remedied after the
attention Of parents had been called
to need for treatment. The treat
ment, by family physicians, depended,
OF course, upon the volunteer CO.
operation of parents. Most Of them
are only too anxious to cooperate.
For the difficulty does not lie 50
much in unwiuingness to remedy de-
fects. The difficulty lies in discover
ing them and bringing them, system
atically, to the attention Of parents.
The child under even the occasional
scrutiny OF a family physician offers
no problem. The real problem is
represented in the overwhelming
majority of school children who have
no family physician. And these are
to be reached only through the
schools.
The estimated cost of an adequate
system of medical and dental exami-
nation, with follow-up work by
nurses through the parents, is only
$280,OOo annually. Commissioner
Mason says, I'VE could build d nice
hospital or hospital wing" with that
amount. Certainly. And we can
keep on building hospitals, and
spending millions Of public funds to
support the chronically i'll who crowd
them. But the need now is for in
telligent effort in detection OF the
defects which have revealed Amer
ica's young manhood as shot through
with preventable inf1rmities. Such
program would tend toward reducing
the need for more hospitals. And
the proper place to apply that pro-
gram is in the public schools.