The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1945-11-02

lpractice or who are engaged only part
time, the ratios are even more startl-
ing The United States Public Health
Service in 1871 reported counties in
which there was only one doctor I'M
der age So to as many as 5000 to 5000
and in some extremes $1,000 to 10000
persons.
1t is not surprising to find that the
same disparities that appear in the
distribution of medical personnel ex-
list with respect to the distribution
of facilities as the determining fac
tor is the same in each case. This
factor is not need-but the ability of
locality to provide economic sup
port The result is that whereas the
national ratio of general hospital beds
was "a per 1000 population just be-
fore the war, the ratios in such states
as Mississippi and Alabama were less
than half that. The surgeon general of
the United States Public Health Serv-
ice testified before the Pepper com
mittee that 40 per cent of the counties
in the United States with an aggregate
population of more than 100000
have no registered hospitals. The sit
uation is aggravated by the fact that
many of the facilities in rural and
semi-rural areas represent duplica-
tions of poor equipment. There are
many instances of number of smaller
cities in a general area each having
a small city hospital-but without an
electro-cardiograph machine in the lot
The Halliburton bill Is. 1917 and
the Wagner-Murray-D ingell bill Is.
1050-H. r. 3293) contain program
to meet the needs for health facilities.
They provide first for the study of
such needs in each local community
and for the development of plans for
meeting them by a program of con-
struction of an integrated network of
facilities. AS described by the sur
geon general such a network would
be composed of small neighborhood
or community health centers," cru
raj hospitals" district hospitals"
and larger base hospitals"
The small units or health centers
would usually include offices for local
physicians and DENTISTS facilities for
emergency medical and surgical work;
a small number of beds; and limited
laboratory facilities.
The rural hospitals would be located
within easy reach of several health
centers and would be equipped to pro-
vide additional basic medical, surgi-
cal, obstetrical and laboratory serv-
ices.
The specialists services that would
not ordinarily be available in the
areas served by the health centers
and rural hospitals would be provided
in the district hospitals that would
be located so that they could serve
several rural hospitals. These dis
trict centers would also in most cases
provide nurse training, and instruc-
ton for interns.
The keystone of the whole system
would be the large base hospital which
would be designed to serve
the district hospitals throughout a
state. The base hospital would be
equipped to provide all types of medi-
cal care and services and to conduct
extensive post graduate study and re-
search.
With such a network of facilities
covering the entire country every per-
son in the nation would have ready
access to the means of immediate di-
agnosis and care for the common rela-
lively simple ailments and, when nee
essary. to the more complicated types
Of medical service.
Such a network of co-ordinated
health facilities is essential to the sue
;essful operation of an inclusive
health insurance program such as is
in the Wagner Murray
Oingell bill