National medical service
1943-10-20 1943 1940s 15 pages -4- accurate diagnosis, both at home, or in doctors' surgeries, or clinics, or Health Centres, or in properly equipped institutions, with arrangements for medical curative team work at every place. Such treatment facilities should be uniformly available, fre...
| Institution: | MCR - The Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick |
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| Language: | English English |
| Published: |
20 October 1943
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/10796/5D635E8C-0DE3-492C-AACC-903719E87132 http://hdl.handle.net/10796/24518DBA-3ED9-4CE3-B88E-825A1D00972C |
| Summary: | 1943-10-20
1943
1940s
15 pages
-4- accurate diagnosis, both at home, or in doctors' surgeries, or clinics, or Health Centres, or in properly equipped institutions, with arrangements for medical curative team work at every place. Such treatment facilities should be uniformly available, free of cost, to every citizen, irrespective of class, sex or status. Health is frequently the workers' only asset, and on its unimpaired continuance depends his livelihood, economic position, and the stability and happiness of his home, and of that of his dependants. No worker should have to purchase or preserve his health at a price, with penalisation or health damage if he has not the necessary means. Such facilities for restoration to health or advice for precaution against disease should be provided in every part of the country. The primary aim must be to secure for the whole community the best medical service that Modern Medicine can provide. 9. Prevention. The first step is to emphasise the necessity of a social policy based on the Prevention of Disease. It is transparent that under present day conditions no individual citizen can personally provide for himself or his family a guaranteed microbe-free wholesome water supply, a modern necessity for communal health. This can only be provided communally, preferably through a representative elected Local Authority. Such a body could undertake a multiplicity of health protecting duties. Such Local Authorities have powers by permissive legislation to undertake many such commitments now. These could be extended and most duties made compulsory. Adequate protection even provision and distribution of food supply could be included. A clean safe guaranteed milk supply could be attempted. A good national housing policy, with open spaces, recreational facilities, modern labour saving appliances, at reasonable rents, is a prerequisite. This general preventive health policy will have to be decided on nationally, and delegated as required to local authorities of regions, localities, boroughs and parishes. 10. Such a service should be unified under the control and administration of one National central Government Department, preferably a Ministry of Health, with powers of compulsory direction, and charged with the responsibility of ensuring the carrying out of the health policy. The Ministry could be given, powers of delegation of duties. Its administration should cover all aspects of the curative ameliorative or preventive Medical Service. 11. Local Government Reform, and especially its burdensome financial or rating aspects are inextricably mixed up with any consideration of a National Health Service, but it is not proposed to elaborate any proposals in this document. But it is only fair to say that many Local Authorities especially the smaller ones, rightly fearful of any encroachment (without corresponding advantage) on their powers and scope are keenly interested. The doctors too, suspicious of "lay'' dominance in professional and medical matters emphasising the failings and limitations of the smaller elected bodies are anxious to ensure that health matters should be relegated to larger Regional Authorities, with Regional Health Advisory Councils (on which the medical profession will be well represented), and wish and have even pronounced for, the establishment of such larger authorities before the extent and scope of the National Health Service be settled. Unless the duties of these Regional Councils are clearly defined it might be dangerous and not without elements of future friction to impose them now over the smaller Local Authorities. The issue has not been prejudged here but the close association of Local Government reform and the National Medical Services are stressed here in view of the professional attitude so far adopted.
292/847/2/113 |
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| Physical Description: | TEXT |