§ 28. Lieut.-Colonel FREMANTLEasked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether the Secretary of State for the Colonies has under consideration any proposals for ameliorating the conditions of medical service in the Windward Islands; whether he is aware that the conditions referred to have been the subject of memorials from the Grenada Medical Service since 1919; and when it is proposed to give a final decision as to the points at issue?
§ Mr. ORMSBY-GOREThe answers to the first two parts of my hon. Friend's question are in the affirmative. A decision will be arrived at in the matter at an early date, but I am sorry to say that the financial position of the Windward Islands is such as to restrict the possibilities of improvement in the conditions of the medical service.
§ 29. Lieut.-Colonel FREMANTLEasked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies which colonies, and how many individual medical appointments, are affected by the discontinuance of recruitment in this country in the case of certain medical posts at low salaries; how these appointments are now filled by the several colonies; and what are the medical qualifications and nationality of the successful candidates for such posts?
§ Mr. ORMSBY-GOREThe question whether a medical appointment in the West Indies should be filled from this country is frequently decided only when a vacancy occurs, and accordingly it is not possible to state definitely how many individual appointments are affected, but the number is probably between a dozen and a score. The appointments concerned are some of those in the Windward, Leeward, Bahamas, Turks, Caicos and Cayman Islands. Most of them are filled by local West Indian candidates of British nationality possessing qualifications obtained in the United Kingdom or Canada. It appears that there are only two medical men in the islands in question whose qualifications are foreign.
§ Lieut.-Colonel FREMANTLEIs it the case that the reason these posts are filled by persons holding American degrees is because the conditions of service were not such as to attract those with British qualifications?
§ Mr. ORMSBY-GOREI believe that those two doctors with American degrees were British West Indians.
§ 30. Lieut.-Colonel FREMANTLEasked the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies whether the Secretary of State for the Colonies is still, in the words of the Wood Report, always hampered in recruitment for colonial medical appointments carrying rights of private practice by the absence of sufficient data as to the value of such practice; if so, what steps have been taken by his Department to 954 give effect to the suggestions of his predecessor in office for removing this defect; and with what result?
§ Mr. ORMSBY-GOREMy hon. and gallant Friend will, no doubt, appreciate that the value of a private practice must vary in accordance with the individual capacity of its holder, and accordingly such information as the Colonial Governments are able to supply can only be of limited utility as a guide to the value of the appointment. The passage in the Report dealing with this point was referred to the Colonial Governments concerned for their observations, and no specific reply has yet been received. I may say, however, that there has been no difficulty in the case of any appointment to these Colonies since the date of the Report.
§ Lieut.-Colonel FREMANTLEIs it a fact that, despite these uncertainties, a definite idea of the enormous advantages of private practice is given to those applying for appointments?
§ Mr. ORMSBY-GOREI believe that all that is done is to tell candidates in round figures what the private practice brought in to the previous occupant of the post.