The Public Health Service faced this problem squarely and, loyally supported by the Bureau of War Risk Insurance, demonstrated the wisdom of this move. The Surgeon General went even further and established real outpatient dispensary service in connection with certain examination clinics in the District Offices and hospitals of his Service.
The Bureau of War Risk Insurance then assumed direct control of the entire District organization and the Director, Colonel Forbes, after an extended survey of this organization and the methods of furnishing service to his patients, which took him into practically every District Office and many of the larger cities served by medical units, evolved the plan of extending dispensary service to every section of the Country. With his keen insight into organization problems, one of his first moves was to obtain Congressional authority to further divide the Districts into sub-districts. He appreciated that each sub-district office was a potential dispensary, the examination clinic in each District Office and the medical unit at each sub-office being the nucleus upon which to build a U. S. Veterans’ Bureau Dispensary Service.
Under the terms of the Veterans’ Bureau Act, the Director is charged with the responsibility for proper examination, medical care, treatment, hospitalization, dispensary and convalescent care, necessary and reasonable after care, welfare of and nursing service to beneficiaries of the Veterans’ Bureau, and since he is so charged, the manner in which dispensary and reasonable necessary after care can be afforded is a matter of immediate importance. It is therefore proposed to establish in each District Office and sub-district office a dispensary of standard type which will vary only in size according to the amount of work in the city and surrounding territory which it serves. It is proposed to establish a type of dispensary to be used as a standard which will provide facilities for a medical clinic, a tuberculosis clinic, a neuro-psychiatric clinic, a surgical clinic and an eye, ear, nose and throat clinic. In addition, there will be a dental unit, primarily for the purpose of making accurate dental examinations, and secondarily for the purpose of furnishing dental treatment. It is proposed to establish an X-ray laboratory and a small clinical laboratory and pharmacy. These are the facilities of the standard type of dispensary proposed.
In the District Offices, and in a few of the largest Sub-offices, this standard type will be developed to the greatest extent as these offices bear the greatest burden of making examinations and furnishing out-patient treatment. In addition to the clinics above mentioned these Offices will be equipped with complete Physiotherapy Clinics.
The initial expense involved in establishing dispensaries will necessarily be large, but once established, will not only furnish medical service of the highest type to patients of this Bureau, but will, it is believed, result in an actual economy when compared with the present method of providing similar medical service practically on a contract basis. X-ray service alone costs the Government large sums annually which, with the establishment of the dispensary, can be practically eliminated. Laboratory service is also an expensive item of out-patient service when performed by contract, which can also be eliminated. Dental treatment to which patients of the Veterans’ Bureau are entitled under the law, is a matter of grave concern as it is handled at the present time on account of the great expenditure involved. This expense can be very materially reduced if the Bureau establishes its own dental dispensaries where careful examinations can be made and definite determination of the dental disability can be made by trained examiners. Treatment to which the patient is entitled can then be furnished either by the dispensary or performed by contract under close supervision.
Every medical officer in charge of a hospital is faced with the problem of de-hospitalization of patients of this Bureau who have reached the maximum amount of recovery afforded by hospital treatment. I believe there is not a medical officer here who is not facing this problem at the present time and who knows that patients are in hospital not actually requiring further hospital treatment but who do need further medical attention and careful medical observation to enable them to make a complete recovery.
It is believed that the dispensary with its trained professional staff to render medical treatment and to provide medical follow-up and after care during that period when the patient is undergoing the final stage of his physical recovery and is making his social and vocational recovery to a life of usefulness in the community, will meet a long felt need. It is believed that the period of hospitalization can be materially shortened if the patient can be discharged directly to a well organized out-patient dispensary where his treatment will be continued and his social and industrial rehabilitation made under the careful surveillance of trained medical groups. The effects of hospitalization, prolonged after the maximum benefit has been received, are injurious to the average patient and if continued, soon makes of these patients domiciliary charges upon the Government. This is to be deplored and prevented.
As soon as the dispensaries are established, this Bureau is, and will continue to place them more fully at the disposal of the hospitals for the purpose of shortening hospitalization and hastening his physical and social recovery. This is one of the most important functions of dispensary service.
The Director is charged, under the law, with not only providing treatment for compensable claimants of this Bureau, but he is also charged with maintaining the physical condition of claimants who are undergoing vocational rehabilitation during the period of their training. The dispensaries have been located as far as possible to serve the greatest number of trainees and will provide medical service to take care of the so-called intercurrent diseases and accidents from which the trainee may suffer as well as furnish him treatment for diseases or disabilities connected with his service. With the increasing number of claimants availing themselves of vocational rehabilitation, the problem of medical service is one of no small import and it is believed that the dispensary furnishes the best solution of this problem.
There is another class of beneficiary of the Veterans’ Bureau who is entitled, under the recent Veterans’ Bureau Act, to medical treatment—namely, those claimants whose disability is not sufficient to warrant an award of compensation. Heretofore only patients who were compensable were entitled to medical treatment and the claimant must have a disability of ten percent or more to entitle him to compensation. Under Section #13 of the Veterans’ Bureau Act, a patient with any degree of disability is entitled to treatment for a disease or disability, which is connected with or aggravated by service. This adds a class of patients to whom the Veterans’ Bureau must provide treatment now and in the future. The dispensaries, it is believed, will meet this demand.