Native Medical Practitioners

Splendid Service in Islands

THE work that is being done at the Medical School in Suva in training native medical practitioners for service in the various territories continues to prove its value.

Mrs. Kathleen Bignell, wife of a well known planter at Fulakora, Ysabel, Solomon Islands, writes: “Last month I became seriously ill with an attack of blood-poisoning. My sister and I were entirely alone on the planta tion at the time, with no vessel available.

She did all in her power, but she could not arrest the poison. She sent for help to our District Officer, who came to us at once, accompanied by Eroni Leauli, a native medical practitioner who had been trained in Fiji and sent to do work among the Solomon Islanders.

“Although he had only a limited supply of medicines, Eroni fought the poison, and undoubtedly saved my life. I was much impressed w r ith his unfailing courtesy, his kindness, and his undoubted skill. I consider that every credit is due to him and to the Medical School that can turn out such men.”

Case From New Hebrides

Rev. J. S. Jaffray, a Presbyterian mis sionary, who has spent 28 years on the island of Malekula, in the New Hebrides, reached Sydney by the Morinda on April 25, and told the Sydney Morning Herald of a wonderful service rendered to the population of the island by a Fijian native medical practitioner a few months ago.

In December a disastrous hurricane swept the island, laying crops in ruins and wiping out what promised to be a bountiful harvest. This was followed on January 9 by a second visitation, which destroyed what was left of the crops.

These disasters were followed by an acute shortage of native food, in the wake of which came a peculiar epidemic, from which natives were dying in alarming numbers. When tlje missionaries saw that they could not cope with the out break, they asked for aid from the auth orities, who arranged for a native medi cal practitioner from Fiji to visit Make kula.

The practitioner, Mr. Jaffray said, dis played uncanny skill in dealing with the situation, and he had the epidemic well in hand in little more than a week.