The General Conference

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D.C. · Jun 10, 1909

The General Conference

THIRTY-SEVENTH SESSION, MAY 13 TO JUNE 6

Departmental Meetings

Medical Missionary Department

Wednesday, May 26, 5 P. M.

Dr. W. A. George presented a paper entitled “What Constitutes True Medical Missionary Work?” making numerous quotations from “Testimonies for the Church,” Vols. VI, VII, VIII. Among the important points brought out were: “This is a great and important branch of our denominational work.” “When all our medical missionaries live the new life in Christ, . . . they will have a much clearer understanding of what constitutes medical missionary work.”

In our missionary work it is not always necessary to urge peculiar views. In fact, it is often better to let our lives preach silent sermons. Ministers and physicians should work in unity for the one purpose, and physicians should be in attendance at our camp-meetings. They should also give health lectures by means of which they might often reach the higher classes. Every member of a church should take hold of the medical missionary work, and to this end physicians and nurses should carry on an educational campaign in our churches.

Another important branch of the medical missionary work is the circulation of literature on health and temperance. It is important that we take a stronger stand on true temperance reform, presenting the total abstinence pledge and securing signers for the same. We should also teach temperance in eating. Cooking schools, hygienic restaurants, and the like should be established in many places as educational centers.

Dr. A. B. Olsen mentioned the parable of the good Samaritan as being the best example of true medical missionary work, emphasizing that such work includes the tender, gentle spirit of compassion for our fellow men.

J. A. Burden quoted a number of statements from the Testimonies: That “medical missionary work is yet in its infancy;” that “genuine medical missionary work is understood by but few;” that “the time has come when every member of this church should take part in this work;” and that there should be a large army of nurses and teachers trained to go from city to city and village to village presenting true medical missionary principles.

D. E. Blake told of the health and temperance work being done by the workers in the Nashville Sanitarium for colored people among various churches in that city and in one of its large colleges for the negro race. He said, “We need the help and co-operation of our people to carry this work forward.”

Dr. D. H. Kress mentioned that in the parable of the good Samaritan, the priest and Levite had opportunity of doing a greater work than the Samaritan, by helping the sufferer in a spiritual way as well as the physical.

Dr. J. R. Leadsworth gave instances showing the natural tendency of nurses and physicians engaged in medical missionary work to lose sight of the spiritual help they may give, and make their work largely professional. This may be remedied by a sufficient mingling of the missionary and the medical work during training.

Dr. Lauretta Kress related experiences in doing medical missionary work while taking the medical course; and Dr. R. H. Habenicht told of his connection with a tent effort, and of other Bible work resulting in bringing fifteen people into the truth during the time of his medical studies.

In closing the discussion, Dr. George emphasized that medical missionary work is not to be confined simply to our sanitariums, but that it is to be done everywhere, also that the work of our physicians is to get every one interested in this work.

Concerning temperance it was said that if any people in all the world should be interested in temperance work, it should be Seventh-day Adventists. Miss Bilz was given time to close the discussion of her talk of the previous morning, and stated that the organized W. C. T. U. are now going further in this line of work than any other people, and that we should uphold them in every possible way in advancing this work.

Fourteenth Meeting, May 28, 8 A. M.

Dr. D. C. Ross was asked to read the paper prepared by Dr. Lillis Wood-Starr entitled “Schools of Health.” Dr. Starr gave experiences illustrating the fact that by means of schools of health, hearts may be reached promptly and efficiently. Her medical missionary experiences began with single individuals and families; but it was not long before she was conducting schools, and this was followed by openings for nurses to enter families, and teach mothers the principles of cooking and healthful living. The doctor, as a result of her small beginning, has had the opportunity of lecturing to forty thousand school-children on alcohol and tobacco.

Elder R. S. Owen spoke with regret of the fact that he had been so many years in evangelical work without being directly connected with the medical work. He believed it was a mistake to attempt to separate these two branches of work. The Spirit of God is urging us to unite the evangelical and the medical.

Dr. Paulson gave suggestions from personal experience as to openings for lectures and health schools, stating that many times we miss opportunities for doing a great work through a neglect to meet some seemingly unimportant call.

L. A. Hansen said, “The word of the spirit of prophecy is, Educate! educate! educate!” I believe the sustenance of our medical work is dependent upon this. Our work in Nashville was opened up He related their experience there in demonstrating the wisdom of teaching the proper preparation of commonly used foods, rather than encouraging the use of the manufactured health foods.

J. A. Burden quoted from the Testimonies that “we are not called to feed the world, but we are called to educate them.” He related far-reaching results of health talks given in the first vegetarian restaurant in Australia.

Dr. A. B. Olsen stated that in England they conducted schools of health in which they furnished printed programs, giving the details of what would be taken up at the various sessions. Ordinarily a course consisted of four days’ work with afternoon and evening sessions. A hall was secured, and a gas range provided. Sometimes admission was by ticket, and at other times a collection was taken up. The Leicester Sanitarium was the fruit of one of these schools of health. The program was somewhat as follows:— First Evening.—True Temperance; What It Means. Second Evening.—Household Hygiene. Third Evening.—Common Errors of Diet. Fourth Evening.—Simple Remedies. As part of this evening’s program, some attention was given to the evils of drug medication. First Afternoon.—Breakfast Dishes. Second Afternoon.—Substitutes for Flesh (not imitations). Third Afternoon.—Fruit Drinks, or else Hygienic Cakes, according to circumstances. Fourth Afternoon.—Invalid Diet.

Miss Margaret Bilz: I have often carried on health schools, considering the topics, Diet, Dress, and Drugs, and I have found a good interest as a result.

Fifteenth Meeting, May 30, 8 A. M.

Dr. J. D. Shively read a paper entitled, “To What Extent Are Drugs Necessary?” Only recently has drug medication been studied from a scientific standpoint, and the result of this study has been a tendency toward simplicity and preventive and conservative medicine. As an example of this conservatism, may be mentioned the fact that at the recent tuberculosis congress it was asserted authoritatively that there is no known drug for the cure of tuberculosis, and that sunshine, diet, air, and rest are our main dependence. This same conservatism is invading the domain of other diseases with even more successful results.

It is probable that drugs will never be entirely discarded. There are a few whose loss, as we now view it, would be a real world calamity. However, the use of drugs is largely empirical, and satisfactory results do not always follow the use of the best-established drugs. The question may be asked, To what extent are drugs necessary? The answer is, just to that extent that we have no remedy more effective. Here our sanitariums come in, and offer remedies for many conditions where formerly drugs were supposed to be necessary. In fact, many forms of physiological action can be secured much more effectually by means of sanitarium methods than by the use of drugs. (1) In some cases it seems necessary, even in our sanitariums, to give medicine in order to relieve the mind of a patient

who feels that nothing is being done for him unless he has something out of a bottle. In such cases it is sometimes an advantage to give medicine, if only a placebo. (2) There are certain acute specific diseases where we know nothing to give that will act so well as certain drugs, and then again, we find it necessary to use disinfectants and anesthetics in surgery. It may be said, in a general way, that the trend of modern medicine is toward simplicity,—fewer drug remedies, and the use of physiologic remedies.

Dr. H. M. Jump brought out that the general use of drugs in our institutions would be a denial of one of the reasons for the existence of such institutions. The doctor read a number of pointed statements from “Spiritual Gifts,” Vol. V, regarding some of the evil effects of drugs.

Dr. W. A. George warned against taking an extreme position against the use of all drug preparations, mentioning disinfectants, anesthetics, and other preparations. He quoted from the Testimonies that we should educate away from drugs; and that, if we would study, in many cases we would find some method of treatment which would take the place of drugs, he said, “Some of us who have tried have found that it is very rarely necessary to give drugs.”

Dr. D. H. Kress: “It is a fact that the best recognized men in the medical profession have very little confidence in drugs. The reason is that they have seen not only their immediate effect, but their after-effect.” Concerning the light our physicians have in regard to the use of drugs, he said, “There are some things we have to take by faith,” mentioning that while many of the commonly used drugs do have an immediate effect in relieving diseased conditions of the body, they have an after-effect of causing diseases of the bone and other permanently injurious effects.

Sixteenth Meeting, May 31, 8 A. M.

In accordance with the motion of yesterday morning, the discussion was continued on the topic of “Drug Medication.”

Dr. G. H. Heald called attention to an article in the Journal of the American Medical Association, May 15, entitled “Pharmacologic Fetishisms,” which was written by a professor of pharmacology in one of the Washington medical colleges. This paper goes on to show that many of the drugs relied upon by a large proportion of the medical profession are worse than useless in the treatment of the diseases for which they are used.

Dr. H. F. Rand gave instances showing how hydrotherapy is successful in the treatment of malaria, even in cases where quinin has been unsuccessful.

Dr. Lauretta Kress had been tempted only once to give a sedative in sleeplessness, but she resisted the temptation, and as a result of personal effort and prayer, the patient obtained six hours’ sleep. It afterward occurred that the patient at the time was under conviction, and during the prayer yielded her heart to God.

Dr. D. H. Kress: Drugs often give the appearance of immediate relief which is only deceptive. Older and more experienced physicians see the after-effect, and become very skeptical about the use of drugs.

Dr. H. F. Rand, being requested to outline briefly his treatment for malaria, said: (1) Clean out the alimentary tract; (2) by means of cool treatments, stimulate the white blood-cells to destroy the plasmodium. I begin about sixteen hours ahead of the expected chill, giving treatments every hour until the time of the chill. The treatments should be adjusted to the reactionary power of the patient. If there is a chill at all, it will be very slight. Rarely if ever is there a second chill.

Dr. V. L. Fisher: Though there is more difficulty in using hydrotherapy outside of the sanitarium, if a physician will first educate himself in these lines and carefully educate his patients, he can accomplish a great deal. The greatest difficulty is in the treatment of patients who have been under a physician giving large doses of powerful drugs.

Dr. Butterbaugh: In outside practise one has very much more difficulty in using hydrotherapy; for instance, if one has a number of patients several miles apart, he can not be there to personally supervise the hydrotherapy; and to trust it to the family would often be worse than useless.

Dr. Olive Ingersoll mentioned cases of malaria in which the patient was not strong nor able to take vigorous treatment, stating that in her experience, such cases had responded more successfully to a combined hot water and dietetic treatment than to cold-water treatment.

Dr. David Paulson: “The way we relate ourselves to drugs is what distinguishes us from other physicians.” He related an experience in a hospital where half of the malarial fever cases were treated by himself and Dr. D. H. Kress with water treatments, and the other half with the usual methods, employing quinin. Not only did their cases respond better than the others, but certain advanced cases turned over to them by the other physicians as undesirable, were successfully treated by means of hydrotherapy.

Others spoke of the need of educating away from the use of drugs, and of the great need of a medical school of our own, in which young students can learn at the beginning to use rational methods instead of depending on the use of drugs.

Seventeenth Meeting, June 1, 8 A. M.

E. G. Fulton, being asked to occupy ten minutes describing the work of the vegetarian restaurants, cafés, and cafeterias, stated that vegetarian work is real missionary work, and constitutes an opening wedge for the entrance of the message. Many who inquire about food, by so doing have their interest aroused in regard to spiritual matters. We always have reading matter. The Testimonies say that vegetarian restaurants should be established in all large cities. Twice the number of employees necessary to conduct restaurant work may be employed, and let them alternate between restaurant work and various lines of city mission work.

It is impossible to make a successful cook in two or three years. More interest should be taken in the education of cooks who can prepare food that is hygienic, and at the same time acceptable to those whom we want to reach through the restaurant work. We are attempting to get away from all “mock” dishes. We have been compelled to use these names more or less, otherwise our patrons would not partake of the dishes; but as fast as we can educate them, we are using names more in harmony with our principles.

Restaurants should be closed on the Sabbath. We have had definite instruction on that point, and have been blessed in following out the instruction. Some, it is true, will accuse us of being narrow, of attempting to starve them or forcing them to eat meat; but as a rule, when we have talked with them, they come to admire our principles. On Friday afternoon we have a number of the girls put up lunches for our patrons and our helpers. These they take for luncheon on the Sabbath.

Elder Starr: We have found in Australia that these lunches are a means of introducing our health foods in the homes.

E. G. Fulton: And I will say also that the restaurants are a great help to the sanitariums. Moreover, properly conducted restaurants pay well; but in order to do this, they must have good cooks and good service. It is my conviction that not one girl in forty knows how to set a table. Our work should be educational. We should have the very best service in America.

Dr. W. A. Ruble: I am very anxious to have this restaurant work started here in Washington and in other Eastern cities. We are behind the times in this matter.

Dr. W. A. George: We have had definite instruction that there should be restaurants started in all the large cities of the South.

Dr. D. H. Kress: It is difficult to teach health principles when we have no place to direct people to get proper food. A restaurant could be made a great blessing in Washington.

Dr. A. B. Olsen: A properly conducted restaurant is genuine missionary work. I wish we could get more of them in this country and also in Europe.

A paper by Dr. F. E. Braucht, entitled, “Relation between Medical and Business Departments of Sanitariums,” was read by Dr. Leadsworth. In part, he said: “I think we are all aware that the relation is a very close one, and one in which the duties are very often likely to overlap; but I am of the opinion that in most cases no serious misunderstanding need arise, provided the medical and business heads consult much, and see to it that each knows exactly what the other is doing and planning. “All money for the institution should be received and paid out through the treasury department; but no bills should be paid without the ‘O. K.’ of the head of the department for which the articles were purchased. It is a fact that the superintendent must be responsible for all medical and surgical work done in the institution, as the laws, as well as the patients, have made this so.”

In discussing this paper, L. M. Bowen, business manager of the St. Helena (Cal.) Sanitarium, said: “In considering the underlying principles of business management, I believe we should start with the board of trustees. I believe the board should be made up of men who understand sanitarium work, and should have a policy outlining the work of the different departments. We should have men to fill positions who are consecrated men, and who can work together. All should understand what their duties are, and should counsel together regarding

the work of the institution, even in small details. Under the board, I believe the business and medical departments can be so organized that they will not conflict.” Concerning a question in regard to advertising, he thought the board should settle such questions by fixing a policy for the institution to follow. In closing, he said, “I believe when it comes to a matter of precedence, we should favor the medical department of the institution.”

L. A. Hansen stated it to be his opinion that the board should be the court of appeal in matters causing a difference of opinion.

Dr. W. B. Holden related instances showing that by closely urging the settlement of small items, the business manager can harm an institution to the extent of thousands of dollars, also that a superintendent should not make special rates with patients independently of the business office.

Dr. Ruble spoke of the need of the board’s taking a sufficient interest in an institution as an essential toward success; and Dr. Henry Harrower emphasized the importance of good letter-writing and a knowledge of business methods as a factor in success in institutional work.