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in periods not exceeding 184 days at a time. Study leavemay also be granted. After two years’ service medicalofficers under the age of 45 can be appointed to thefixed establishment, and contribute to a pension scheme.The retiring age is 60. On appointment, governmentmedical officers are usually stationed at Salisbury orBulawayo, where they are paid an allowance of £200per annum in compensation for not’being allowed toundertake private practice. They are usually requiredto do relieving duties at various out-stations until

appointment to a permanent post. Appointments inGreat Britain to the service are made through the HighCommissioner for Southern Rhodesia, Rhodesia House,429, Strand, London, W.C.2, who will supply furtherdetails on request.

SUDAN MEDICAL SERVICE

SINCE 1947, in pursuance of its policy of building upthe professional services from trained and qualifiedSudanese, the Sudan government has suspended therecruitment of British officials on pensionable terms.At present there are opportunities for appointment ofBritish male doctors on contracts up to 10 years whichmay be renewable, and for British women on short-termcontracts, and on probation for annuity terms, whichmay be replaced by long-term contracts up to 20 years.These are general-service posts. There may be in additionsome specialist posts ; approval for these has not yetbeen obtained, and the terms of service attached tothem have not yet been finally approved.The salary attached to the posts for men doctors ranges

from £E901 to f:E1450 for appointment on long-term contractand from JSE1126 to £E1812 for appointment on short-termcontracts. Salary on appointment will depend on the age,qualifications and experience of the doctor. A man on a

6-year short-term contract is entitled to a gratuity on retire-ment, equal to one month’s pay for each year of service. Aman on a 7-10 years’ contract is entitled to a gratuity varyingfrom EE1500 for 7 years service to £E3000 for 10 years’service. The short-term contracts draw a higher rate of

pay than the long-term contracts, but the gratuity entitlementis smaller.

The salary attached to the posts for women doctors rangesfrom NE901 to £E1450. The only forms of appointment nowopen for women doctors are probation for annuity (which ispaid on reaching the age of 48, subject to a minimum of 15years’ service) and short-term contracts without bonus.Consideration is being given to applying long-term contractsto women doctors.In addition to the basic salary, a cost-of-living allowance

is payable, varying from YE142 for an unmarried official toEE352 for a married official according to the number of

dependants. There is at present no income-tax in the Sudan.

Candidates must pass a strict medical examination.Free passages by air or by sea are provided by thegovernment on the official’s appointment. There is nowa government air charter system whereby officials (andthe families of men officials) are provided with freepassages to the United Kingdom. Those not wishingto take advantage of the system will be given a leavepassage allowance. An official’s first term of service isusually about 18 months after which he qualifies forleave. First leave may be 110 days ; thereafter, if hetravels by the air charter system he is entitled to 80days annually in the United Kingdom ; otherwise he isentitled to 85 days between departure from and returnto the Sudan. Government quarters are available inmost stations at very reasonable rents. Newly appointedofficials may not be allotted married government quartersin their first tour.

MEDICAL MISSIONARY SERVICE

CHRISTIAN medical men and women who wish to offertheir services where the need is greatest will find oppor-tunities in medical missionary work. There are uni-versity medical schools, central and rural hospitals,and many opportunities for public-health work andresearch. Christian missions can claim to have givenChina a modern medical profession. In India andPakistan they have helped to maintain high ethical andprofessional standards, and have specialised in nursing

education. In Africa and other primitive regions theyhave pioneered rural health services and the trainingof subordinate staff. All over the world the work isbecoming integrated with the government services thoughstill maintaining its identity. For undergraduate candi-dates for the service there are hostels in London andEdinburgh, and also various scholarships. At leasteighteen months or two years of resident appointmentsis advised for all, and special diplomas or higher degreesfor some. Special missionary training is also requiredby some societies. Service is for terms of from two tosix years according to the country and climate ; thereare opportunities for postgraduate study during furloughs.Offers for life service are expected, but short terms areconsidered. Salary is on a missionary subsistence basiswith allowances, free passages and quarters, and pensionprovision. There are schools for missionaries’ childrenat home and in many of the fields. Applications fromstudents or qualified men and women should be madeeither to the secretary of one of the denominational orinterdenominational missionary societies, or throughthe local branch of the Student Christian Movementor the Intervarsity Fellowship, or to the Chairman,Medical Advisory Board of the Conference of BritishMissionary Societies, Edinburgh House, 2, Eaton Gate,London, S.W.I.

THE BRITISH MEDICAL STUDENTS’ASSOCIATION

Tiiis association was founded in 1942 and its member-ship includes the student body of all the medical schoolsin the provinces and Northern Ireland and most of thosein London. It is a purely professional organisationproviding a means of communication between medicalstudents of different universities and other countrieswith professional organisations and Government depart-ments. An annual general meeting, publication of theBritish Medical Students’ Journal and a periodic news-letter, regional meetings, and free access to the filmlibrary of the British Medical Association, help to promotethese interests.

In March the executive prepared and circulated to allmedical schools a factual outline of those parts of theMedical Bill affecting medical education, together withcomments and proposals. Discussions were held inmany medical schools and there was general agreementwith the principle of the Bill, but fears as to how it mightbe implemented. Medical peers and members of Parlia-ment were approached and many of the points made byB.M.S.A. were raised during the Bill’s passage’throughthe House of Lords and the House of Commons.

Clinical conferences held in different medical schoolsare an important part of the association’s work. InSeptember the second annual national conference forclinical and preclinical students will be held in Liverpool.Two international secretaries cater for students whowish to study medical life abroad and for foreign studentswho wish to see medical schools in this country. Thisyear 17 British students have gone to Austria at theinvitation of the Association of Doctors and MedicalStudents of Vienna to do a month’s clinical work at acost of just over £6 each. Other visits and exchangeshave been arranged.An attempt is now being made to establish an Inter-

national Medical Student Service on a non-political basis.As a preliminary to forming this organisation twoexecutive members attended a Dutch congress andone member will visit Prague as an observer at theInternational Union of Students’ Congress.A committee has been set up in cooperation with the

National Union of Students, the Scottish Union ofStudents, and the International Student Service to workfor the founding of a rehabilitation centre for studentswith tuberculosis. At such a centre a university atmos-phere would be created, and carefully graduated hoursof study would become a form of occupational therapy.Schemes on these lines are working most successfully inmany other countries, and already much support hasbeen won for the idea in this country.The B.M.S.A. has maintained contact with the Ministry

of Education and has helped students in clarifying their

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position regarding further education and training grants.All correspondence should be addressed to the secretaryof the association, B.M.A. House, Tavistock Square,London, W.C.1.

EMPIRE MEDICAL ADVISORY BUREAU

THE British Medical Association has set up the EmpireMedical Advisory Bureau with a view to making thestay of overseas medical visitors to this country as

profitable and pleasant as possible, by welcoming themand providing a personal advisory service. The bureau,which is at B.M.A. House, Tavistock Square, London,W.C.1, caters for Dominion and Colonial medical menand women who are staying in this country for post-graduate education or other purposes. Information isobtainable about postgraduate education and courses

of study for higher qualifications ; and inquirers can beput in touch with the organisations and authoritiesproviding postgraduate education. The visitor whowishes to see something of the latest medical work in hisown specialty can be put in touch with the appropriateexperts.A register of suitable hotels and lodgings is maintained

by the bureau, and every effort is made to help visitorsto solve the problem of finding somewhere to live. Bysocial functions and in other ways doctors from theDominions and Colonies are enabled to meet eachother and prominent members of the profession in thiscountry. General information about travel, sportsfacilities, exhibitions, theatres, &c., may also be had.The bureau can be of greatest service to the visitor if hewrites as long as possible in advance of arrival, givinginformation on the following lines : projected date ofarrival, mode of travel, whether accompanied by wife,period of stay, objects of the visit, and in what waysassistance is desired. On arrival a letter of introductionfrom the local hon. secretary of the visitors’ medicalassociation, although not essential, would be welcome.The medical director of the bureau is Dr. H. A. Sandiford,to whom all communications should be addressed.

INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL VISITORS BUREAU

To further cooperation with fellow member associationsof the World Medical Association, the British MedicalAssociation has set up the International Medical Visitors’Bureau to provide a personal advisory service to doctorsvisiting the United Kingdom from countries outside theBritish Commonwealth. The bureau which is at B.M.A.House, Tavistock Square, London, W.C.1, offers informa-tion on postgraduate education facilities, while visits tohospitals and clinics can be arranged and help given infinding accommodation. General information on travel,car hire, theatres, exhibitions is also available. Themedical director of the bureau is Dr. H. A. Sandiford,to whom all communications should be addressed.

THE MEDICAL WOMEN’S FEDERATION

ALL qualified medical women are eligible as membersof the Medical Women’s Federation, which has activelocal associations all over the country and in NorthernIreland, as well as a large London association and anoverseas association linking up members all over theworld. The federation is non-political. It providesmedical meetings for its members and publishes a

quarterly journal reviewing subjects of special interestto women doctors. These naturally cover a wide tractof social medicine, including maternity and child welfare,women in industry, the care of children and of difficultand delinquent children, the management of nurseryschools and day-nurseries, women in prisons, children inapproved schools and remand homes, the illegitimatechild, and many related subjects. Advances in obstetricsand gynaecology, and psychological studies of women andchildren are also naturally of special interest to womendoctors ; and recent work in these branches of medicineis reviewed in the journal. From time to time thefederation undertakes social studies and publishes theresults. It is also able to protect the interests of itsmembers by presenting arguments in any cases wherethere has been discrimination against women doctors.The federation’s headquarters are at Tavistock HouseNorth, Tavistock Square, London, W.C.I.

In England NowA Running Commentary by Peripatetic Correspondents

I ONCE met a man (or did I dream it ?) who designsanatomy lecture-theatres for medical schools. He hasbeen doing it-for 200 years and always uses the samedesign. He says it is simple. You first arrange a

series of tiers, the more the merrier, preferably in a semi-circle (because benches arranged parallel to the black.board encourage the more boisterous to climb from benchto bench instead of using the steps). On these tiers youplace the seats. There is no need to bother about the firsttwo tiers, which are too near the lecturer for anyone to wantto sit on them. The tiers higher up must be supplied withvery narrow and very hard seats. Owing to the prevalenceof note-taking at medical lectures, a shelf must be placedin front of the seats, just out of comfortable reach, sonarrow that the student cannot put his notebook on itwith any degree of security, and nicely balanced so thatthe slightest touch will cause it to rock violently. Theobject of these arrangements is that the students shall(a) keep awake, and (b) acquire a bold free handwritingwhich will inspire confidence in patients who see it lateron their bed-letters or later still on their certificates forcorsets.* *

That mankind in general is allergic to the notion ofdying is proved by the readiness with which he inventseuphemisms to describe that commonplace event,Thus, those fortified by a firm faith in individual survivaltalk of passing or passing over ; those less sure, of passingaway. Surgeons have been heard to talk of patientswho perished, and to kick the bucket, to croak, to conkout, to pack up, to turn up the toes, or to hand in thedinner pail are only a few of the familiar colloquialismscoined to connote the act of dying. But out of themouths of one of two small children inspecting a deadadder came what is probably the best and simplestsynonym. " Why doesn’t he go ? " asked the younger,prodding the reptile with a stick. " Because he can’t,silly," replied the superior elder brother. He’s

stopped." That’s it, stopped. Le mot juste.Here lies A. B.

Who started on January 1st, 1900And stopped on December 31st, 1970

What better epitaph could anyone want ?* * *

I had little difficulty in finding a locum for the twodays after my car accident. Just a short phone chatwith Osbert, my neighbouring colleague, who imme-diately offered to do my calls in exchange for two sessionsat the local clinic two months later. Including politeinquiries about the well-being of his wife, garden, children,and golf, the whole transaction was completed in underthree minutes.My part of the bargain, I soon discovered, was the

harder. Two weeks before I was due to begin my fourhours’ work the chief health visitor informed me shewould be forwarding me a form to complete for recordpurposes. " Just what one would expect from these localauthorities," I mused, while I started jotting down theusual particulars-date of qualifying, hospital appoint-ments, papers published, and copies of three testimonials.By the next post I received four foolscap pages of TwentyQuestions. Unlike the usual application form, no

questions were asked about my higher degrees, nor wasthere any opportunity to mention my paper on Incidenceof Adolescence in Field Mice.

Addressed to " Dear Sir " the form started by asking" Are you Mr., Mrs., or Miss ? " and " What is thenationality of your father ? " Then came the usualquestion designed to plough members of the fair sex:" What is your wife’s nationality ? " Later on I had tosupply full details of my health, my eyes, ears, nose,toenails, or is it tonsils ? (These typed forms are difficultto decipher.) On page 3 I was asked to squeeze into theinadequately spaced columns " all illnesses, accidents,and operations which had kept me away from workfor more than 14 days," and again on page 4, "all