The Wilmington morning star., 1947-02-14
Doctors Divide Ouer
New MedicQ[Sch00Z
Issue Only One Against
Good Health Progress
In North Care,w q

70 a $l0,94O, 900 tSH oG
the good health .N>,e
N. c. Medical Ca. <ssion
was conferred on a + led FOUR.
year medical school at the Uni
versity of North Carolina.
The opponents of the proposed
expanded medical school Joined
with DR.. Clarence Poe, Raleigh
publisher and vice chairman of the
Medical Care commission, in call.
ing for the multi-million dollar
program to build hospitals and
health centers in every section OF
the state.
Opposition to the medical school
was lead by Don Elias of Ashe-
vile, a member of the Medical
Care commission who asserted
that there was no organization
and no organized opposition te
anything except the medical
school,"
Appropriate money just as fa1
as you can find it for rural hospi.
tails and medical centers," he
said, land when you have done
that and still want a inedica-
school. I'll not oppose it although
don't think it is needed"
Bailey Charges
DR.. C. W. Bailey of Rocky
Mount, who said that he repre-.
scented the fact finding group Of
North Carolina physicians, assert
red that the supporters of the en-.
tire good health program "repre-
sented a school of medicine al
Chapel Hill primarily and good
health secondarily."
Bailey said that his group, after
organizing secretly, had sent
ballots to 2,088 North Caroline
doctors and that Of this group 99e
voted In favor of the hospitals and
clinics and 172 against, but tina
the doctors voted two to one
against the proposed medical
school.
Bailey spoke after DR.. Paul F
Whitaker of Kinston, a former
president of the N. C. Medica.
society, had made a vigorous de
Tense of the four-year medica
school.
Whitaker asserted that the ex
banded school lis a vital part Of
a plan tailored by impartial ex'
pert to meet the health needs O.
North Ca1olina and termed. SOUND
by numerous medical educators
and authorities on medical care
throughout the nation" and he
termed as ''silly and vicious" the
accusation that this great move
ment was initiated merely to ex
pand the University Medica.
school,"
Real Issue
"The real issue facing tht
people" he said, lis the nipple
mentation of the basic principle
established by the General assem-
bly, OF 1915 to .effectuate a tota
health program, including a state
supported medical school to trair
the workers to perform the null
1 tiple services"
DR.. W. W. Coppridge of Dur
ham, president of the State Medi
cal society, said that despite the
fact-finding poll, the medical soci
ETY. '''endorses the whole program
of the Medical Care commission
| He. said that IS percent Of TIT
county societies had endorsed the
program. that the State society
had endorsed it, the executive
committee had approved It. ant
that the five immediate past presi
dents of the society were support
ing it.
i. Dr.. w. S. Rankin of Charlotte
in arguing that The medical schoo
was not needed said that another
four-year medical school would
give North Carolina three sucl
schools and that only four state:
in the union had more than three
More Schools
Eve would have more school:
on the basis of population and pei
capita income than in Other
state" he told the committee.
In answering argument that the
medical school was needed TO pro
duce doctors, nurses and technl
clans needed to man the proposed
hospitals and health centers, DR.
Rankin quoted the report of fact
finding committee of prominen
out-of-state doctors who made
survey O. the state and recon-
mended establishment of the med
ical school at Chapel Hill.
Continued on Page Three, Col. g.