CO129-561-1 Tung Wah and associated hospitals- financial problems 9-9-1937 - 2-10-1937 — Page 3

C.IP Medical

Financial.

1.0.A.9.568.

!

schief.

Desires decision by telegraph se financial

१.१.३५.

2

This is not the first occasion on which

the Hong Kong Government has had to come to the

assistance of the Chinese hospitals.

It will be

seen from (4) on the 1935 file that

opportunity was then made

not taken of the Government grant (to enforce

strict control of the Board of Directors, and the

administration generally, of the hospitals.

The

O.A.G. then stated that there was difficulty in

persuading the Directors to agree to a substantial

reduction of their powers by sharing them with the

Advisory Board and that if this were enforced it

might be impossible to find Directors to carry on.

The Government would then be faced with a largely

increased expenditure on hospitals. He hoped that

the Directors would in future discharge their duties

in a more efficient manner.

The 0.A.G. now states in the present

despatch that he has "every reason to suppose" that

arrangements set on foot to secure greater

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efficiency will before long be carried to a

successful conclusion. I take this statement to

mean that the administration of the hospitals is

still far from satisfactory.

Certainly on the

financial side the present Directors appear to be

no improvement on their predecessors, and there is

an estimated deficit for the year of approximately

$250,000.

A small Audit Committee has been appointed

to investigate and draw up a statement showing the

actual financial position, and the 0.A.G. states

that he will probably suggest, when the report is

received, the appointment of a Commission to

investigate