A letter to Sir J.T.B. Duckworth, Bart., President of the Devon & Exeter Hospital &c., &c., on the exclusion, by statute, of practising medical men, being donors & subscribers, from the committee of the Devon and Exeter Hospital / by T. Shapter, physician to the Devon and Exeter Hospital.

  • Thomas Shapter
Date:
1857
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Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: A letter to Sir J.T.B. Duckworth, Bart., President of the Devon & Exeter Hospital &c., &c., on the exclusion, by statute, of practising medical men, being donors & subscribers, from the committee of the Devon and Exeter Hospital / by T. Shapter, physician to the Devon and Exeter Hospital. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    1] presence of the medical men, who, not being im practice, or being honorary governors, have been allowed to assist in its counsels. The practice of the other hospitals throughout the country, also testifies to the utility of having medical men members of their Boards of Management ; for not only do they, for the most part, place medical men on their Committees, but in two other in- stances only, besides that of the Devon and Exeter Hospital, do they direct’ the exclusion which it is the purpose of this letter to expose.® To look for a moment to the question as a matter of policy on behalf of the institution itself. By thus enacting a law whereby medical men are deprived of the privileges common to their neigh- bours, do not the Governors deny themselves the opportunity of occasionally associating with their Committee those who may be useful to it? And do they not, moreover, hazard the risk of de- taching, from feeling an interest in their Institu- tion, a whole class of persons whose professional tendencies lead them to entertain it ? That this latter consequence may result there can be no doubt ; for it so happens that an instance in illustration not very long since presented itself. A medical man intimated to the Secretary his intention of leaving with him a donation of a liberal amount, but on his being told that he was, as a medical man, by a recent alteration of the statute, excluded from the privileges enjoyed by other donors, contributing the same amount,
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