Evening star., 1946-05-02
As Others See Us

The Metropolitan Health and
Hospital Survey has been most
constructive undertaking and if it
is followed up vigorously by citizens
of the community is sure to produce
helpful results.
One danger of surveys by experts
brought in from other cities to re-
veal publicly the deficiencies of the
home folks is that they are apt to
create more antagonism by their
criticism than interest in finding
remedy for what is wrong. But in
the present case that danger has
been skillfully avoided by the tone
of the preliminary reports. There is
a minimum of criticism rejecting on
personalities. There is a wealth of
suggestion, based on broad expert
ence, on how to improve what Is
being done.
The parts of the survey given to
the public by newspaper digests of
the preliminary reports are rather
fragmentary and for the most part
concerned with generalizations. Yet
to be published is the complete re-
port, supporting the Isl major rec
concentrations for improvement in
public health and hospital admins
tration and coordination in the
work of the thirty-five voluntary
health agencies functioning in the
Metropolitan Area of Washington.
The follow up work planned
by the Washington Metropolitan
Health Council, which sponsored
the survey, contemplates the use of
the survey recommendations as
subjects for further inquiry by COM
mittees of citizens. In the words of
DR.. C. E. A. Winslow, the distin-
guished student of public health
who supervised the survey, "The
future of public health in the Met
ropolitan Area of Washington de-
pends upon you, its citizens, upon
your vision and your courage.
We have indicated the goals to be
obtained. We have suggested cer-
tain of the plays which have proved
reliable ground gamers in other
games. The ball is in your hands"
Whether the survey is worth while
depends, in other words, on what we
do with the suggestions it contains.
Generally speaking, there are two
basic criticisms of conditions here
which tend to overshadow the pre-
else specifications. DR.. WinsloW
correctly diagnoses the main weak
ness in public health administra-
tion as the denial to citizens of
Washington of the right to voice
In their own government, a condi-
ton which is "a violation of the
fundamental principles for which
we have fought the Revolutionary
and two world wars" The Star, for
one, is gratified' to find this addi-
tional support for one of its own
reiterated suggestions that any
substantial reform in Washington
must be based on representation of
the citizens in their own Govern
ment, which is Congress.
The other broad criticism con-
Germs our hospital facilities, which
DR.. Claude w. Munger condemns in
measured words as "the worst which
could be encountered in any area in
this country of comparable impor-
tance" and as a disgrace to the
Nation" That is a fearful indict-
ment. It should spur tagging ef-
forts in the House to enact the Tyd-
ings hospital bill, already passed by
the Senate. There has been much
testimony in support of that meas
ure, granting partial funds for new
hospital construction. But no more
eloquent testimony of the need for
that legislation has been given than
has come from Dr. Munger's report
A concerted effort now to get the
Tydings bill out of the House Dis
trict Committee for House approval
should be the first result of the
health and hospital survey.