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EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE.
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Kong for the protection of the community or the prevention of disease. This, however, was immediately remedied, and a comprehensive course of instruction was prescribed which, in addition to detailed theoretical lectures, included a series of outdoor demonstrations, organised in six sections for Public Health and quarantine, water supplies and sewage disposal, Public Health and vital statistics, medical inspection of school children, health propaganda and child welfare, and anti-malarial measures; in all, forty demonstrations of two hours each. Each section was in charge of a separate Medical Officer of the Public Health Department. The course, both theoretical and practical, as explained to me, seemed much too comprehensive for under- graduate instruction leading to a medical degree. Nor could the exclusive requirements prescribed in the syllabus of lectures and demonstrations be carried out in practice, except to the detriment of other subjects of the curriculum.
24. Most of the students in the University settle in Hong Kong after graduation, and some are appointed to posts in the Govern- ment Medical Departments. The Director of Medical Services is, therefore, directly interested in the knowledge of Public Health which the students acquire through the instruction which his department provides. By arrangement between the University and the Director of Medical Services there should be no difficulty in re-organising the courses of study, theoretical and practical, to satisfy the special needs of Hong Kong and the requirements of the University with regard to other subjects of the curriculum, Nor should there be any difficulty in the provision by the Medical Department of a senior and experienced officer to be responsible for the instruction as a whole, and to direct the several parts on behalf of the University. The requirements of Government service necessarily involve transfers, and in the past the frequent changes of staff have seriously interfered with the teaching. Reasonable continuity of office should be ensured if this subject is to receive the attention its importance demands.
25. In 1934 a project was under discussion for the appointment of a Professor of Public Health, and the establishment of a department in the Faculty of Medicine. The project was dropped
July 21, 1939]
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE.
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for financial reasons. It is, however, very necessary that the University in Hong Kong should be directly associated with the provision of education in Hygiene and Preventive Medicine, and that pending the formation of a University department arrange- ments should be made to provide accommodation within the University for the Officer of the Medical Department who is appointed to take charge of the courses of instruction.
26. Forensic Medicine.-Medico-legal post-mortem examina- tions are very numerous in Hong Kong. The student has un- rivalled opportunities to gain experience. Instruction is provided by the officer of the Bacteriological Institute in charge of the Victoria mortuary, and consists of lectures and demonstrations. There is no practical work. The lecturer, who has great ex- perience, adapts the instruction to the special needs of Chinese students. Stress is laid on the conduct of a medical witness in court-under cross-examination and in the actual giving of evidence. The importance of carrying out a medico-legal post- mortem examination as a basis for any legal procedure which might follow is emphasised. The examination of modern methods of blood stains is described, and modern advances in the treat- ment of poisoning are detailed. The course is one of great value. The subject is of as much importance in the Far Eastern medical institutions as at home, and in Hong Kong advantage is taken of the opportunities at hand. Accommodation in the University should be provided for this subject, and the specimens of medico- legal interest in the possession of the Lecturer should be housed in the Pathological Museum.
CLINICAL INSTRUCTION.
27. The main centre of clinical instruction is provided at the new Queen Mary Hospital, which was opened in May 1937. This magnificent hospital, situated on the south side of the island in open surroundings, 500 feet above sea level, embodies the latest improvements in hospital construction. It is completely equipped in all departments, and provides accommodation for 550 patients. Wards are allotted to the Medical, Surgical and Gynaecological units of the University, are organised as teaching units under the direct control of the clinical professors, and provide opportunities
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