Poor Law Medical Officers' Association / the address delivered by Joseph Rogers.

  • Rogers, Joseph, 1821-1889.
Date:
1871
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Poor Law Medical Officers' Association / the address delivered by Joseph Rogers. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    officers, has always remained supremely indifferent as to what local arrangements may have been made for Medical Rehef,—a natural corollary of the Department’s entire ignorance of the out-door sick poor, and of the benefits derivable from an efficient system.^ Their inaction in reference to the proceedings of the Birmingham Board of Gfuardians was a striking instance in point. The 7th clause directs that the Guardians should elect, if necessary, a sufficient number of ratepayers resident in each district, to form together with the ex-officio and elected Guardians of the Poor, a Committee for the man- agement of the Dispensary of such district. There can be no doubt that this provision is a most excellent one; for, by the election of resident ratepayers who are not Guardians, an element is imported into the dehberations of the Com- mittee which is not so Hkely to be affected by the spirit of cHque or party so common in a Board of Guardians. Then there is the great probability of securing the services of gentlemen who would be willing to look after the interests of the sick, but who would not care to mix themselves up with the general administration of the Poor Laws. When Mr. Hardy introduced the MetropoHtan Poor Bill, he copied this clause, bodily. At the time, it was hailed with much satisfaction, as a decided step in advance. It was, however, subsequently abandoned by the Department, on the supposi- titious plea that Boards of Guardians would be more readily induced to establish Dispensaries in the Metropolis—their indifference, and in some instances, positive hostility to that course, ha\dng been solely excited by the manner in which certain officials expressed themselves in reference to the needlessness of the Act, and by the hesitation, frequent change of purpose, and general incompetence of those who had charge of the Act for some months after its enactment.f The 8th clause directs that the Guardians shall provide a house, building, room, or rooms, to be used as a Dispensary or office for the Medical Officer, and for the meeting of the * Sir J. Kay Shuttleworth and Mr. G. P. Villiers, who were joint members of the Commission for inquiring into the operation of the Poor Laws, in 1832, have both since stated that, whilst every other cause of pauperism was investigated, sickness of the poor, as an element in its production, was completely overlooked, -—so that the ignorance of the Department is simply chronic. 11 have been told by a perfectly reliable authority that the Department had intended to abandon the Dispensary clauses of the Act entirely, and would have done so but for the facts brought before the public at the successive quarterly meetings of this Association.