Naval Medicos Save
p. 60 · Read in the full issue
Islanders' Lives
THE New Zealand Navy corvette, Arbutus, during its recent tour of the Central Pacific, was instru mental in saving the lives of at least three people.
When the corvette visited the isolated Tokelau Group, north of Samoa, Dr. J.
Lopdell, senior medical officer in Apia, took the opportunity of making a tour of inspection. He found a young girl on the atoll of Fakaofu suffering from a perforated appendix: Dr. Lopdell, as sisted by one of the sick-berth attend ants from Arbutus, and a local NMP, performed an emergency operation in a native hut. Only slight hope was enter tained for the girl’s recovery, but penicillin was landed from the ship’s medical stores for post-operative treat ment. When the corvette made a second call at Fakaofu, the girl was found to have made a remarkable recovery.
Another operation under similar cir cumstances was carried out on the neigh bouring island of Atafu, and at Nukunono a Catholic priest was found to be seri ously ill with beri-beri. Both these patients were taken to Apia on the cor vette, for hospital treatment.