Special report from the Select Committee on the Medical Act (1858) Amendment (No. 3) Bill [Lords] : together with the proceedings of the Committee, minutes of evidence, and appendix.

  • Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Select Committee on the Medical Act (1858) Amendment (No. 3) Bill.
Date:
1879
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Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Special report from the Select Committee on the Medical Act (1858) Amendment (No. 3) Bill [Lords] : together with the proceedings of the Committee, minutes of evidence, and appendix. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by Royal College of Physicians, London. The original may be consulted at Royal College of Physicians, London.

    77/456 (page 63)
    Mr. Mitchell Henry—continued. Although I have every proper respect for the British Medical Association, which admirably represents the freemasonry and good-fellowship of the medical profession, I cannot see that it is in any way entitled to be represented in the Medical Council. The medical profession is to be represented there in its educational relations, and with these the British Medical Association has nothing whatever to do. It is an admirable association for its proper purposes, but it has no- thing at all to do with education. 751. Then you think it is a matter of no con- sequence to the British Medical Association, which is composed of 8,000 practitioners, what becomes of medical education ; is that the opinion which I understand you to express ?—Far be it from me to say that it is of no interest to them ; I hope they all feel a great interest in it; but the public also has a great interest in it, and the public does not send members there by universal suffrage. 752. I thought you said (I may have misun- derstood you) that the public interests were already represented on the Council by the nomi- nation of medical men by the Crown?—In a sense, yes; the Crown is a visitor of all the licensing bodies, and as such visitor represents itself, through certain channels, in the Medical Council; and that, no doubt, is intended for the public interest. 753. May I take it as your opinion, that if a conjoint scheme of examination was established the council might with advantage be reduced in numbers ?—Yes. 754. That being so, do you think that your objection to increasing the present number of the council would not be got over, because even by adding some representatives from the British Medical Association, as a powerful association of medical men, you would still have a very much reduced council ?—I see plainly enough that by a reduction of the members from other quarters it would be possible to reach a quantity that, numerically speaking, would admit of the intro- duction of a new element; but I am very far from thinking that, on any such supposition, the British Medical Association ought to furnish that element. I am not prepared to speak off-hand from the point of view of the constitution of the association, but I imagine that the association is wholly a matter of voluntary annual subscription ; not a corporation with defined public objects, but merely, I believe, a registered company in some form or other, with an organisation which, though extensive, does not make it in any sense a public body. I am not sure what its constitution is, but I can hardly see how it could be treated as a constituency for public purposes. 755. How is it that the members of the British Medical Association, 8,000 persons in number, can state that they are not represented on the council, if the different bodies to which they in- dividually belong are represented?—! do not know. As regards your notion of the British Medical Association sending members to the Medical Council, I cannot see oh what principle you would draw your line between the members of the British Medical Association, to whom you would give the franchise, and people outside that association to whom you would not give it. It has happened, from accidental circumstances, that I am myself not a member of the British Medical . 0.105. Mr. Mitchell Henry—continued. Association; why should my neighbour, on the strength of his paying a guinea a year to the British Medical Association, have a vote for the Medical Council? and I, because I do not pay the guinea a year, not have a vote ? 756. Is not this the reason why they make the demand, because, in their opinion, they are not represented on the council at present, inasmuch as the different licensing bodies and corporations who are represented are very close bodies, and have as an electorate a very small number of their own members ?— I presume that that is a view held by some; but you are familiar, of course, with the constitution of the English Col- lege of Surgeons, and you know that it has no narrowness of constitution. Chairman. 757. You have already handed in the con- stitution of the different corporations in 1870?— Yes. 758. Has there not been a statement, issued under the authority of the council in 1879, of the present constitution?—Yes. 759. Can you hand it in ?—Yes (delivering in the same). Mr. Mitchell Henry. 760. Does the Medical Council draw any por- tion of its funds from public sources l—There is the registration fee, but it draws nothing from the public. 761. It has been stated that about 200,000/. has been received by the Medical Council from the profession since its formation in 1858 ; is that statement correct?—In the 21 years it has reached, I believe, about 130,000 l. 762. If the council were reduced in number, I presume that the necessary expenses would be a great deal less ?—Yes. I am not able to speak very confidently of the finances of the council, but, as regards the- present time, I believe that for the last year or two we have been spending something beyond our income, although not at the time conducting any visitatiofis of examinations. 763. The materials for the registration of practitioners, and the discharge of the important function of visiting the examinations, must always cost a considerable sum of money ?— Yes. 764 With regard to the objections made by the Scotch universities to a conjoint scheme of examination in Scotland, am I correct in saying that it is principally on the ground that the quality in all the examinations might be deterio- rated ?—That ground is taken by the Scotch universities. 765. Is a similar ground taken by the other Scotch licensing bodies ?—I believe not. 766. What is their ground of objection? — The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh speaks of the proposed measure as one of sweep- ing and fundamental change which they believe to be “ neither necessary nor expedient,” and they allege “ that the effect of it will be to damage the prestige and probably to cripple the resources of universities and medical corporations, against which it had not been proved by inquiry that they are unworthy of their privileges and incom- petent to discharge the duties hitherto imposed upon them in connection with these privileges.” H 4 That Mr. Simon, C.B., F.R.S. 23 June 1879.