Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1946-06-16
Hospitals
Continued From First Page. }

employees IN different hospitals.
Mr.. Castle, former Undersecretar,
OF State, who is president of Wash.
ington's Garfield Hospital, came here
direct from a meeting of hoSpita
council there last Wednesday. He
declared one of the problems facing
that area-a uniform accounting sys.
tenn for hospitals--is of terrific i'm.
portance." The lack of such a sys.
tenn was sharply criticized in the re.
cent Metropolitan Health and Hos.
pital Survey report by DR.. Claude w
Munger OF New York. The majority
of the hospitals in that area, hc
said, were still in the dark ages ir
respect to their work in accounting
and statistics"
Success Cited.
Boston has made substantial
strides in this direction.
DR.. Nathaniel w. Faxon, admins
traitor of Massachusetts Genera
Hospital, who is president of the
Hospital Council. characterized 6
uniform system as basic" An eX.
pert consultant on hospital account
ing has been working for the council
here for some time, he explained, tc
StandardiZe systems so the various
hospitals could be more uniform, anc
could compare costs to the benefit o.
all, including the public. DR.. Faxor
recommended that Washington OBJ
tain trained hospital consultanl
/ on accounting to set up a system fol
the city.
The consultant here, William F
Voboril. formerly of the United
Hospital Fund of New York eX-
planned that 20 voluntary hospitals
in the Boston area were in the
process of establishing uniform
accounting system" based on the
highly successful one in New York
City. which operate there in SO
hospitals
Sound System Mandatory.
In New York, Mr. Voboril assert
ed. the accounting systems of hos
pitfalls formerly were hodge podge
with no satisfactory reports" Now
he said, it is mandatory to obtain
money through the United Hospital
Fund. Such a system should be
made prime agreement in any
contract between a voluntary hos.
pital and its source of funds Mr.
Voboril recommended.
When it comes down to bras
tacks, cor1pulsion in some form
should be required he said, "the
sooner the better"
The public deserves good financia
reports from hospitals which it sup
ports, according to DR.. Charles F
Wllinsky, director of Beth Israe
Hospital. secretary treasurer of tn.
Boston Health Council, and an off.
cial of the American Hospital ASso.
citation. Tax funds and generou.
donors have made possible the main.
tenance of large proportion of hos.
pital care for the under privileged,
he said. Certainly those who gave
and continue to give have a righ
to know not only how the none,
was spent. but whether there was al
adequate return in community serv.
ice in justification of their generos.
ity. What has been the value of tn,
free care rendered? The correc
answer calls for the knowledge of {
proper method of computation, ane
the compilation of acurate figure!
in readable form"
Accrual Method Urged.
He recommends adoption of tn,
accrual method for hospitals as uset
IN progressive private business
Business he explained, "has shiet
away from the former cash methot
to the accrual method, by which in
come may be determined whel
earned rather than when collected
and expense determined when in
CURED and not when paid"
The Hospital Council here i
closely integrated with both tn
Greater Boston Community Council
which plans for the metropolitan
area, and the Greater Boston Com
munity Fund, which raises none.
for many agencies, including tn
!; hospitals. In Washington neithe
the hospitals nor Health Securit.
Agency, which operates an admis
sions bureau are official member
of the Community Chest, but shoul'
be the recent survey there empha
:, sized.
The Boston Council, DR.. Faxol
. explained, meets only once a veal
but it's executive committee NEE
: monthly. making recommendation
to the hospitals on many matters
including salaries and wages. TIL
committee only makes recommended
lions, but, he addc@ yhese carr.
, nota laIa r1,aicrlaf and llcl1o Ky 1,