Document kmv8ZkxEKjM7Yx5KoQpz6DzR0

FILE NAME: General Electric (GE) DATE: 1925-1929 DOC#: GE034 DOCUMENT DESCRIPTION: Downs Collection - Schenectady Museum, NY Swope Files Vol II & Letters and Conference Reports DOWNS COLLECTION SWOPE FILES ON INDUSTRIAL HYGIENE AND MEDICAL CARE MARCH 6, 1925 to OCTOBER 17, 1929 VOLUME II SCHENECTADY MUSEUM, NEW YORK GE MUSEUM 0020 C K a ^ n ; V ^ c' \ V : M 7& 0 SWOPE FILES ON INDUSTRIAL HYGIENE AND MEDICAL CARE March 6, 1925 to October 17, 1929 VOLUME II GE MUSEUM 00202 INDUSTRIAL TOXICOLOGY HARVARD UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH Hadlyme, Conn. August 9, 1928 H 1 1 7 55 VAN DYKE STREET/ Dear Mr. Swope: I am very sorry indeed to hear of the probability of your losing the services of Dr. Smith and I cannot help hoping he may still change his mind. If he does not, it will be hard to fill his place. I quite understand your desire to select if possible some man from your present organization, but I am afraid you will not be able to do so. The trouble is that the physicians in charge of the manufactuning plants have been selected rather haphazard and few of them are really qualified. The men in charge of the lamp works were more carefully chosen but they have not the surgical training which is needed in the former class of plan t s . Although preventive medicine is important \ the first requisite for a candidate for one of the m a n u facturing plants.is that he be able go handle the surgical side of the work satisfactorily. T' you could find such a man for Schenectady, Dr. Vosburgh could have charge of x the medical side. The best candidate within t-J o organization is, I believe, Dr. Hanna of Baltimore, b v g I am not well enough versed in surgery to be sure. Dr. Smith's opinion on this point would be valuable, and indeed he should have the last word in the selection of a candidate and I ope he would be willing to break the new man in. If he r.-;es not think well of Dr. Hanna, or if the latter is unwA .ling to leave Baltimore, then it will be necessary to ap .cal to the deans of medical schools for the names of c a n d f .fes, and perhaps also to the Association of Industrial Bur. -Tons. If I can be of any help in this m a t . :-r I hope you will command me. Very sincerely yours Mr. Gerard Swope General Electric Company Hew York City.. GE MUSEUM 00203 Dfi-r 15? Bewliton* li.ii; #ill res-mbe-T that I spoke to yon about the possibility .of te>* Smith going in to p r iv a te p r a c tic e . Although th is i s not d e fin ite ly decided, I think i t ray be s h o r tly find would l i k e to know i f you have any suggestions fo r th is p o sitio n a t SdJenoci&dy. Dr* VosJjurgh is a gone doctor, bat as 1 understand it he has no surreal exporienee, and r* Bunn, of vjioa I think highly, and is connected kXth the Incandescent L&isp fleparbaeivt, I aa> afraid sleo has no surgical background. I*a there enyone in ear organisation ho weald qualify for this position,, or have you anyone in mind on .the outside- Very tru ly yo u rs. 1 Dr. Alice If .11ton Esdfyae, Co-v.;ecticut GE MUSEUM 00204 Jgf:JT ^ * GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY U IN TERN A L C O R R ESPO N D EN C E I if -M Schenectady, D e c e m b e r 17, 1927 Mr. James F. Harris NEW YORK OFFICE Dear M r . Harris : Referring again to your letter of the 15th, m y attention was called this morning to the attached article, b y Mr. B i r g e r W. N o r d l n d e r of t h e R e s e a r c h L a b o r a t o r y regarding "A New Method for Detecting and Measuring Mercury Vapor." Perhaps the attached would be of more interest to Dr. Hamilton than the article accompanying my previous letter. : k. mm Enc. PUBLICITY DEPARTMENT "-!f -vi .. ` s igSS! GE MUSEUM 00207 Rovember 8, 1927 Dr* D* Glen Smith Schenectady Dear Dr, Smith: hr. Swope iias asked, me to send you the attached clipping taken from the October number of the HBUL EEWS, which is the organ of the Rational Electrical kanufacturere Association. Do you know anything about the work of Dr, Crowder? ?ery truly yours* J. F. HABRIS JFK GE MUSEUM 00208 9/20/27 GENERAL ELECTRIC WORKS AMD MANAGERS MR. A. B. LAWRENCE G. E. Works - 1900 Washington Blvd,, Baltimore, Maryland MR. C. D. KNIGHT G. E, Works - 5 Lawrence Street, Bloomfield, Hew Jersey MR. W. S. CLARK G. E. Works - 1285 Boston Avenue, Bridgeport, Connecticut MR. E. W. LAHKENAU G. E. Works - Nuttman Avenue, Decatur, Indiana MR. M. GRISWOLD G. E. Works - East Lake Road, Erie, Pennsylvania MR. E. H. BALLARD G. E. Works - 69 Herman Street, Everett, Massachusetts MR. W. S. GOLL G. E. Works - 1655 Broadway, Port Wayne, Indiana MR. S. T. POWELL G. E. Works - 700 Stanton Avenue, Hew Kensington, Pennsylvania MR. JQHB HOOD G. E. Works - 5441 East 14th Street, Oakland, California MR. G. A. ELDER G. E. Works - 6901 Elmwood Avenue, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania MR. E. A. WAGNER G. E. Works - 100 Woodlawn Avenue, Pittsfield, Massachusetts MR, 3. L. DiELACK G. E. Works - 1 River Road, Schenectady, Hew York MR. H. J. DARLING G. E. River Work3 - 920 Western Avenue, West Lyhn, Massachusetts MR. F. P. COX G. E. West Lynn Works - 42 Center Street, West Lynn, Massachusetts MR. A. A. BAILEI G. E. Works - Windsor Connecticut Mr. C. F. OBERMAIER York Insulated Wire Works of the General Electric Company 465 So. Albemarle - York, Pennsylvania GE MUSEUM 00209 H ealth Press SUITE 714, 111 WEST MONROE STREET CHICAGO Sept. 30, 1926. u / - 2 CO* J Gerard. Swope, Esq., Pres., General Eleotric 120 Broadway, Hew York City. Co., Dear Mr. Swope;- Please take the two minutes necessary to read this let ter. I think it will be worth your while. I have just read -- with interest-- your letter in "SideTrack The Reaper" published b y the Health Conservative Service of the Equitable Life Assurance Society, in which you announce that you have a thorough physical examination at least once a year; and that you are seeing that all the leading men in your organization far down the line, follow the same course. This is, of course, a wise thing to do. Your letter was also read by an official of a medical association who suggested this letter to us. YfiSe as the examination is -- would it also not be wise to make t h e `examinations 100$ or as nearly 100$ as possible? The examinations, of course, do not prevent -- they show the way to correct trouble. Here is the reason for this letter. I am enclosing a book let "How To Be Healthy, Trim and Strong" -- which please accept with our compliments -- which I hope you will take the few minutes neces sary to read. It was published only two weeks ago and has met a real response. Several competent reviewers have called it "The best and wisest book of its kind ever written." Most books of its nature are large and cumbersome and most of them are written by professional athletes or strong men whose very names or reputation discourage the reader or imitator. This is by "A Business Man Who Proved It." It is based on actual experience and is full of common sense. It is in compact form which can be carried in the pocket and used at will. Being in book form it will seem more authoritative than the same truths printed in consecutive issues of the magazines or newspapers. I say this although I have been an advertising man most of m y life. The use of the book, if its advice is followed, will undoubtedly make better and stronger men and lend less fear to those yearly examinations. Therefore -- what would you think of buying a number of these books to present to your colleagues and certain of your employees. We think we can guarantee that in addition to the better examinations--, you would be reimbursed for the dost of the books many times over in a GE MUSEUM OC Gerard Swope, Esq #2- Sept.30,1926 few weeks or months in the added efficiency of those to whom you gave them May we hear from you? Yours very truly, HEALTH PRESS. GAKsS (J P.S. Of course, we could make terms on large quantities at less than the regular price. H.P. GE MUSEUM 0021 Chapter 1. Introduction to Industrial Toxicology 2. Lead) Pathology 3. Lead) Absorption and Excretion. Quantity 4. Lead: Colic. Arthritis 5. Lead: Palsy 6. Lead: Encephalopathy 7. Lead: Diagnosis 8. Lead as a Race PoiBon 9. Toxicity of Lead Compounds. Compounds Used in Industry 10. Lead Mining. Lead Smelting and Refining. Ifstalllo Lead 11. The Printers' Trade 12. White and Red Lead. Storage Batteries 13. Glazes and Enamels. The Pottery Trades 14. The Painters' Trade 15. Miscellaneous Lead Trades 16. Arsenic 17. Mercury 1$, The Hatters' Trade 19. Copper, Zinc, Brass 20. Manganese. Antimony. Cadmium. Nickel Carbonyl 21. Selenium. Tellurium. Vanadium. Phosphorus 22. Caustics. Ammonia. Chromates 23. Sulphuric Acid. Hydroohlorie Acid. Phosgene 24. Nitric Acid. Hydrofluoric Acid 25. Hydrocyanic Acid and Cyanide. Cyanogen Chlorid. Calcium Oyanimid 26. Hydrogen Sulphid. Carbon Disulphid 27. Carbon Monoxid, Mine Gases 28. Petroleum Distillates 29. Oil Furunculosis and Tar Cancer 80. Methyl Alcohol 31. Ether, Aldehyde, Hezamethylenetetramin. Uetol. Amylaoetate. Dimethyl Sulphate 32. Methyl Chlorid. Tetrachlormethane. Tetraohlorethane. Other Chlor Compounds. Methyl Bromid. Nitroglycerin 33* Benzene 34. Benzene Derivatives 35. The Coal Tar Dye Industry 36. The Rubber Trade 37. Turpentine. Tobacco 38. The Prevention of Industrial Poisoning Mr. E. Z*Steever, Schenectady Dr. M. -J. Hanna. Baltimore Dr. G. W. Vannatta, Bloomfield Dr. P. 'A. Taylor, Bridgeport Dr. T. A. Little, Erie Dr. W. H. Garton, Port Wayne Dr P E. Schubmehl, Biver Works, Lynn Dr. L. F. Beefe, Jr., Philadelphia Dr. W. L. Tracy, Pittsfield Dr. D. G. Smith, .Schenectady Dr. E. 0. Jackson, Harrison ,, Cleveland (?) igjS July 31, 1325 Mr. J, II. ityera Th9 MaaMillan Gompajoy (iiedio&l Dcpartcient) so Fifth Avenue : Hew Yortt, .fi, i^y dear Sirs- - I have had soma correspondence with your Mr. Hall and have talked with him over the 'phone relative to Hoot or Hamilton* e book Industrial Poisons in the United States**, and in his letter of J u l y Q t h he quoted a prise of ^4.00 per copy upon an order of twelve or more plus postage. Will you please send a copy of this book te the following:- Doctor li, J. Hanna General Sleotrio Company 1900 Washington Boulevard Baltimore, Maryland Dootor S. W. Taan&tta General Electric Company 5 Lawrence Street Bloomfield, Sew Jersey Dootor ?. A. 'Taylor General Electric Company 1265 Boston Avenue Bridgeport, Conneoticrat Dootor T. A. Little General Siectrio Company Bast Lake Road Erie, Pennsylvania Doctor w. H. Carton General Electric 0carpany 1635 Broadwey Fort Wayne, Indiana Doctor F. E. Sohubmehl General Sleotrio Oonpasy River Works, 920 western Ave, West Lynn, Massaohusetts Doctor L. W. Reefs, Jr. General Electric Qoagpany 429 Horth Seventh Street Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Doctor w. L. fraoey General Electric: Company 100 WoOdlawn Avenue Pittsfield, Massachusetts Doctor w. H. Bum Youngs townc-.iiaada Lamp Works 61? Williame Street Youngstown, Ohio Mr. 3. Z. steever General Electric Company 1 River Road Schenectady, S.Y. GE MUSEUM  J i 'OC HADLYM E, CO NN ECTICUT TELEGRAMS VIA SAYBROOK TELEPHONE, DEEP RIVER 65-2 p ^ r 'a M 2 J' J h /I ! : yi /' u-i U-a^ p-o-~A. j^ C ^ . jU*_e-Le-- , * C cA-va-- Lu-. *--Z3v . ^ **--- ^^1. " *-L' A A R '---J 1o-t--6--t , (3^ ,, ^ L ->...-~^. Vt "Ca ^ >'^*-c- ^ ^ " ( a - O la- ! . La- a _I3-_ - - j* '--' U^ * - r '~* k>--w -->- '" ^ f U'^ UA-UA- -*_. -. q*jl*__u. v ^ i" e>A , t .T *)>r Vava-*. ^ ^ GE MUSEUM 00217 HADLYM E, CO N N ECTICU T TELEGRAMS VIA SAYBROOK TELEPHONE. DEEP RIVER 65-2 ^ 2(* * ^ 1 Cu^vn_LeOm -^JL W - ^ v - ^ W w *-<k Q -- &*--(_ ^ ^ JL. c~ ^ _ - a c ^Q u . h* l. Ux t-^'T -- q -- 6l f*. rr ai)) . *-- v-. k, J U b-.OLo-^-olj-^ CV' "^Vw, "W-'"'/' .-t...^ CXl ^ ^ s ^ a . GE MUSEUM 00218 INTERNATIONAL INDUSTRIAL PHYSICIANS CONFERENCE AMSTERDAM, HOLLAND. - September ? - 12, 1925. DR. ELMER C. JACKSON Jane 11, 1925. Mr. W. E. Burrows, Manager, Edison Lamp Works, Harrison, N.J, Dear Mr. Burrows: Careful consideration has been given to your let ter of June 2d and Mr. Homer N. Calvers accompanying letter of the 1st. While I should wish to encourage our Works Physi cians, in every practicable way, to keep informed in regard to the most advanced practices affecting their work, yet I do not feel that the General Electric Company is justified in sending Dr. Jackson, at this time, to the above Conference It seems to me that our Works Physicians have, in general, a comprehensive understanding of the work in hand and ahead of them, and that there is so much that is con structive for them to do at home that the results of such a journey as that proposed would hardly offset the disadvan tages of the resulting absence. Very truly yours, FCP.HFH ( G erardS wo oe (BZS%9g ver) (Signed) FR A N CIS C. PR* J. W . H . J -ihg HRDVAfD SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH HOST OS, 'M S S . June 1, 132d . Gerard Sv;ope, president, General Electric Company, Broadway, Few York City. dy dear Ur. Swope: The conference of physicians and others connected with indus trial relations, which was held in Schenectady last, week, was very successful. You will remember that I was not in favor of inviting Dr. Goldthw&it, fee ring'th t he would he too technical for nonmedical people, and therefore I hasten to 'tell you that the high light of the conference was the evening meeting s.t which Dr. Goldthwaite not only spoke, but demonstrated to us the essential elements of good posture and the principles which should govern the choice of factory chairs. I am sure that a new attitude toward the impor tance of seating will soon be manifest in the General Electric Company, and will be traceable to Dr. Goldthwaite's speech. The program vas well planned and the meetings small enough to permit a frank and detailed discussion'. Colonel Steever is to be con gratulated on his success in a difficult task, for although the program was full and discussion not shut off, we managed to cover it all in the appointed time. The points which remain in my mind from this conference are the following: (1) The comparative importance of industrial medicine in contrast with industrial surgery. The latter is now well established, methods change little, it is successfully carried on almost everywhere a,nd no new problems confront it. Industrial medicine, on the contrary, is not nearly so well understood nor so successfully administered, and it feces new problems all the time. The absenteeism, due to illness, is many times greater than that due to' injuries, and it is. probably true that what may be called minor medic&l work, the treatraentc'f colds, sore throat, headache, backache, indi gee tion,,-.- is quantitatively the most important branch of industrial'medical service. (2) The importance of certain dangerous dusts encountered in the Company's plants and the various ways of preventing silicosis. (3) The great field of preventive Medicine which awaits the indus trial physician. A part of this has already been entered end the Com pany's physicians are endeavoring to prevent lead poisoning, mercury poisoning, benzol poisoning and silicosis. But there remain still the less conspicuous disorders which ore the result of long continued strain from over exertion of various kinds, such as spinal curvature, GE MUSEUM 00220 AU 11 3 and flat foot, chronic arthritis, chronic cardio-tfascular-renal disease., and especially tuberculosis. (4$ The need of establishing certain standards for ..'thev,work ' in dispensaries and for the reporting of cases. As it is now, there is enough uniformity to permit us to compare the records of one phyeician witk those of another. For insta.nce, when the figures showing infected wounds were discussed, it was discove__e_d__t_h_a_t n__o__d_e_f_i_n_i_t^ion of infection has ever been established, end while one man regards any red ness around the wound as evidence of infection, another calls nothing infected unless there is actual suppuration. f>me physicians are seeking to discover all cases of latent tuberculosis and. to place them under proper treatment . Another has no idea whether or not there is any tu berculosis in the works. (5) The fact that the Company has already experts in certain fields who might be more widely used than the:/ a*e now, -?or instance; Dr. Knabe, the eye specialist in the Schenectady works,could be consulted about the important problems of illumination in lamp works and. in certain departments . of manufacturing plants; Dr. Paci n i , in Chicago, might train attendants in physio-therapy, who would be invaluable in the work of rehabilitating injured employes. There are several Iphysicians now in the employ of the Company, who could work out a practical scheme for the treatment of men and women who have incipient tuberculosis, without obliging them to quit work. This conference had the effect of crystallising in my mind a rather vaguely formulated plan for medical service which should be at once, more expensive, and under some, form of centralised control. That the Company is not now giving first class industrial medical service in most of the plants, and that in some it is distinctly infer ior, has been.brought to your attention several times already. The arguments in favor of a wider program do not need to be repeated I think. What I should like to discuss is a practical method of intro ducing improvements without too much disturbance. There are two ways of doing this; to bring in an outsider, an expert in industrial medicine, or to utilize your own men. The trouble with the first plan is that there are few, if any, available experts. W a d e l i g h t would be the best, but lie is on full time for the Metropolitan Life, and I doubt if he could be secured even for a single short period, and the objection to having a temporary relation like that with your expert would be that he could not repeat his supervisory visits, could not check up as he should. The objection to having me do it is that there are limits to what a woman can do when dealing with men, and I have repeatedly gone to that limit and am not rash enough to wish to venture beyond it. You have already two men in your employ who are products of first class schools and are far superior to the usual industrial physician. Most industrial physicians, no matter how well trained they are, fall victims to routine, losfe their imagination, and their ambition to form larger programs and. carry them out. Dr. Smith of Schenectady and Dr. Jackson of Harrison have these qualities. If tne Company is to continue to have the services of these men and to add others like them to its force, they must be given opportunity to develop, to plan a progressive ... , 4-fe. OF MUSEUM 00221 - 3- and carry it out. Such a. program should not be forced upon any plan r:ut should be presented as one which has be-n formulated at the request of the Company, and has its endorsement. It will probably not be difficult then to out it gradually into force in ail plants. The plan which I discussed with ..lx. Eveleth and which met with his approval was to form a medical committee of three, one from each 5 of the three branches, Dr. Smith from the manufacturing, Dr. Jackson j from the Edison^and from the National Lamp 'Torus, Dr. Bunn of Youngs/ town* He is younger than the two others, his experience is more re stricted than theirs, but he has gone far in his own field, and like them, he is a, forward looking man with a capacity for research and he has a real interest in /Preventive Ctiedicine. I believe he is the best . man in the National Lamp Works and there are obvious advantages in having all three branches represented. These men have the same stan dards and could work together amicably. They would be able to deal with situations in -the plants which especially need jacking up, without (demanding anybody's discharge and without trying to reform too rapidly. should not suggest that they give up their positions in their own plants, only that they be given enough assistance to release them for occasional visits of inspection and conferences. Of course the selec tion of physicians for new branches should be left to them, as should be also the planning of dispensaries- quarters in new and in old buildings. Mr. Sveleth agreed with me that this Medical Committee should not be under the Industrial Relations Committee, but should report directly, in his opinion to the Manufacturing Committee, mine would be that they should report to the President, but whichever it were Mr. Eveleth thought that the carrying out of the Committee's recommendations would have to be in the hands of the Works' Managers, the medical men would act only as advisors. I believe that if you adopt some such plan as this you will be making a start toward the sort of industrial medicine which the'General Electric Company ought to provide. It will be more expensive than now, but not more so than the service given^hany Companies. It can, I believe, be carried out with a minimum of the human complications which attend any change in the management of the personnel end of industry. I shall be in New York sometime toward the end of the month, and I will let you know in advance so that we can make an appointment to meet if you wish. Sincerely yours, GE MUSEUM 00222 TM-v-; 1 M ay 25 Daylight Saving Time 9:30 A oM o (Manufncfaring Committee Room,, Building 2, General Electric Works) I* Address of Welcome, F. 0. Pratt, Vice President In Charge of Engineering and Manufacturing, So What Medical Cars should he provided in a Manufacturing Plant of the General - Electric Company, 3r. D. Glen Smith, Schenectady Works'o So- What should we do as a Company in regard to outside care0 hy Doctor and Visiting Nurse? Ethical situation "between Works and City Physicians0; Dr. T. A,' Little, : Erie Works," 1 3 Dr, F. A. Taylor, Bridgeport Works, 4,, Tuberculoses in Industry l ' i \ > I Dr.*E. C. Jackson, Bdifeon Lamp Works, Harrison. -.f Dr,-:3. L, Voshurg, Schenectady Works, 12:45 P,Mo Luncheon, Office Restaurante 2:00 PoHo. i 5o Medical Seiviee of the International Harvester Companyo . ! . Dr." Alice Hamilton Harvard University. 6. Written description of The John B. Stetson Hospital Service, Philadelphia, Pa., By Milton D, Gehris, Vioe President, John B, Stetson Gompany, Philadelphia. ; I n ' : 5!. : o n tr.C ' ' T>: Vf-- .-lr^ i* . ` a ' * i\.. i o O. i Dr. Alice Hamilton, Harvo.ru. Untrere itjr0 >v /y 3aml o l Operation.* Dr. H. W. arton, D o r t W arns Worice, I'r J. Sampson, S a p t. o f Houn&ries?, OcDeiectady-o 10,' Et ti; Stoni Port frf.;--';. Henri-;:; - Port creo Ur, J, E. G-oldthvni Boston. Ur . 0. A. Eaton (presi ling) . Ilirs 3. li. Dinne, Port Wayne Workso lisp 2 G Daylight S-.T ij Time 9:S0 Aolio. Manurecannine Committee Hoorn, B-aildino- 2, General Electric Works} rW r-J ; V; d f Ile Sela iion of Works Physician to Employment Office, Sxe.iintion o f Applicants for Employment, re- ;jactions , piacine;,- transfers U r. F. B r i l t: ,r A. i. .. .V.... U r . 7i'-\* Hanna, n i l : ^:.i. ' c W orte:, ' O. . * o Solo 0 : : .(Sv.T;Vm *ieri V-V 0.5. v;: ;i n" vv. V *::. o '.'.o l'<r t ''.niy.xt.-- Vror7: c V. ri: ?V'.;Ob. =-' i'...' ). >' X r. 1... Dr, Do lo TTufc-rii;; Irr-riv Oonpsnr Buffale,'2? T. . rroveriron - ' I' ; > h P. T r .-i T.-0-;-l.: Dr !.' J Haima, B a l-:.,i nor ft Werkec Tra ' Eo Sanf-ord Secretar:* f Donerai Sao ptp: Oonr/x- tteoo li of I\T r i. V r iiT T::r O l u Ir- 'bvl.-r-j V :a-.:ona lit.;. , :/mtr. v-.Eiifio t.ionSo 1C, brperiD e n tJ Ir Feeirn; ani. S f i l o ierior Ili so A. M. Tagen, Soheneots iip Work l'T Oor:ir:n- ToTTnT. Service a: viewed rp tire E a p l a p o , Dr W.. H. _Sur>n, National Lanp V.'orlc- , Toanetov.ii - i" -lo -]< j> P r v Tev York, ik-,, t , -o DJ. Hoir i. Di;- iti.*, Se co-.i.oo dv Work;-. SO1' -'' '-O _ " Wo:-'-;.- ; r?,;. t f'Vv- ,p> Va.' 12-i-V-''Vi ;V.`vv . 1'-...-.s ., - ' XV'---- * '"i'V-a :.,V., {Suiaaation -a . . , - : '^ r ; ; i. i J. : ;C'--: : v'u. Ir v:. : o l s <?'-.enee u y o.-. t.o Mr. H. 1. '- - Baltozer). t t t w ;;t -: : \ .7 i .l-.- GE MUSEUM 00228 il IQSDIOilr COST TO SHB SSifSRAL EIECTBIC COMPlHf The service o f medic ine to industry affords a study from many Interest Ins points of view. For the f i r s t t uao in its history Its rather novel service in industry puts it in a showcase where a l l manner of individuals can review its vari ous funotlons and he interested acoordlng to th e ir profession or tra in in g . This meeting w ill , hy its d iv e r sific a tio n of discussions, Illu s tr a te the faot that there are a m u ltip licity of interests and a m u ltip llo ity o f servioes which w ill enter tain a variety o f men according to th eir own fie ld s of endeavor. I t f a l l s to my lo t today to attempt to entertain that group o f Individuals p a rticu la rly who are more interested in the finan ces o f th is company than they are in perhaps any other phase of it s operations. I do not mean to say that th is particular group of m o are not interested at a ll la e ome o f the servioes of medio ine to industry hut i t is quite natural from th e ir point of view to he moot interested la the c o s t. I t would seem lllo g lo a l that one with so l i t t l e business sense as I have should attempt to put down the fa o ts that are to follow hut sinoe it must he done and I have been chosen to attempt i t , 1 w i l l , with a l l due apology and plea fo r patience on the part of those who nmst l i s t e n , try to arrange with some degree o f intelligence a few fa o ts and figures whioh might more approp r ia te ly he done hy oae who is fam iliar with business methods and .tim proper form ality and pro*dure hy which such thing GE MUSEUM 00229 d iffe re n t environments by lo ca l circumstances, p ra ctices, s iz e , e t t f., and fo r the purpose of arriving at a unit of cost as the working basis upon which to make comparisons, e t c ., it would seem more lo g ic a l to take one given situ atio n and reduce the cost of operating in that environment to some given unit o f our organization such as, for example, the individual employee* For th is purpose 1 would like to take the Soheneotady forks because the information is more e a sily available for me, because the number o f employees is large and the medical department is la r g t in proportion and the practices are, X b elieve, as eoonomio as they could be made* On tfcis basis 1 o ffe r for your approval a standard cost per capita which must be the figure that oomea out o f the d ivisio n o f our to ta l c o s t, $ 73,500, by our average number o f employees which is 20,000 Shis gives us $ 3*65 per employee per year whioh is the cost therefore per capita of maintaining the medical service in the Soheneotady fo rk st or in other words, one cent per employee per day* X am Quite sure that in the other p lan ts, i f the unit o f cost is determined in th is way, that i t w ill be very nearly the same because the size of the plant more or le ss determines the re la tiv e size of a medioal department, su pplies, e t c ., and our general practice in economy is s u ffic ie n tly controlled to about the same. Shis figure is lower than p r a c tic a lly any other industry o f our size and im portance in th is country. Such industries, for example, as the International Harvester Company, the Eastman Kodak Company, the Western E le c t r ic , Endloott & Johnson, e t c ., are speadLng from $ 5.00 to $ 10*00 per year per head fo r th e ir medical servioe GE MUSEUM 00230 -4- which Is I hop no hatter in quality than ours hut considerably more elaborate and comprehensive Against th is cost as outlined above I w ould like to sum up a few fa c ts and figures which indicate the saving thru th is expenditure* In order to do th is it is necessary to outline the functions of the medical department as it e x ists today in order that i t may be readily seen what factors are tangible enough to oharge against and what faotors are intangible in such a way that the saving can not possibly be estimated. The practices of the medical department may be out lined as fo llo w s ;- 1 - THE PHE-EMPLOYMEHT PHYSICAL AND MSHTAL EXAMIHATIOH, Ho in te llig e n t employer w ill today be so wasteful of human endeavor as to b lin d ly employ workmen without some l a - ' t e llig e n t guide as to th e ir physical and mental fitn e ss to serve the industry on the job fo r which they apply because there is no question as to the w astefullness, the unhappiness, the discontent, the accident hazard, e t c ., o f m isfitted workman. In other words i t is no longer the problem of gettin g 1 job for a man but it is now exceedingly important to get the man fo r the job in order to avoid the faotors as just outlined above. Moreover, with the re stricte d immigration, the responsibility of the employer under the Compensation Law and the several other fa c to r s , labor is no longer a cheap element in Industry but must be husbanded with the greatest care. In order to be in te llig e n tly guided in th is respect an employer must resort to the Pre-employment Physloel and Mental Examination. GE MUSEUM 00231 - p *~5- I w ill not go Into any technical discussion at th is tine of the routine, G la s s ific a tio n , methods, e t c ., in conducting th is examination because I must stay close to costs and savings. Such discussion i f desired can be obtained from a former paper e n titled "Scope of Industrial Medicine". This pre-employment examination i f paid fo r by tha employer to any disinterested physician would cost at le a s t & 2.00 per examination* This would be the minimum county medical fee in the County of Schenectady. I w ill base a l l calculation s here and hereafter on the minimum county medical f e i but I t is very un lik e ly that the General E le c tr ic Company with its reputation fo r prosperity and wealth would secure the services of any reputable physician even in a disinterested way for the mininaim county medical fe e . I t is more lik e ly and in fa ct is a positive truth based on former experiences that the fee charged would be the maximum county medical fae to the General E le ctric Company for such service. Considering then the faot that the examining physician disinterested in the industry would have no knowledge of the physical and mental requirements of any job .not knowing a d r i l l press from a punch press nor a lathe from m illin g machine and so on thru a ll the v arieties of occupy :.ona which it is the business of the industrial Medioal Departme s to be fam iliar w ith, and considering that the company woi d pay the maximum county medical fee for th is imperfect service no matter how sk ille d the professional phase o f it would be, th is service i f It were not available in the plant would have cost fo r the year 1923 $ 68,215. This represents 13,643 examinations that g e m u s e u m 001 -6 - war clone during the year at $ 5.00 an examination which would probably be the fee charged to the company. This one small phase o f our medical work would cost therefore but $ 4,000 less i f procured outside than the cost of maintaining the whole medical service in the p la n t. leaving the maximum out of consideration and charging the minimum fee that the company could hope to get fo r th is service, i . e . $ 2.00 an examination, we would have paid on th is basis 27 ,286 for the 13,643 employment examinations conducted during the year 1923. This figure is ten times more than the salary of the examiner who not only provides e ffic ie n t medical observations from a professional point of view but is quite fam iliar with the occupational demands of the industry and is equipped therefore with that b it of information which is not a part of the average physician's armamentorium. - PERIODIC SIAMIMTIOflS OP BMPXOTmS. This branch of service is devised to provide a periodic complete and painstaking examination for executives and other im portant individuals whose services are valauble and not easily replaced. The object of it is to prolong the e ffic ie n t service of such men to the greatest degree by checking up at in tervals, consistent with conditions found on examination, in order to retard or avoid the degenerative changes of advancing years and the attending diseases that i f detected in th e ir incipiency can be very s a tis fa c to r ily handled. I t is devised also for the purpose of examining workers in occupational hazards such as dust, sand, merowry, lead, benzol, e t c ., and it is devised also to control more ca re fu lly the operators o f ro llin g stock such as GE MUSEUM 00233 -7 - lo co m o tives, orane3, e t c . It i s , moreover, open to any employe who chooses to take advantage ox the s e r v ic e , i t i s , therefore one strong fa c t o r in preventive medicine hut the r e s u lts are so in tan g ib le i/hat no c a lc u la tio n of sav in g can he made again st tin: fu n ctio n sinca we never know nor can we estim ate what damage we have prevented or what len gth we have added or what e ffic ie n c y or what comfort are obtained thru th is s e r v ic e . I t is e n tire ly out o f the c a lc u la tio n o f sav in g s. I t is merely mentioned in p assin g as one o f the in ta n g ib le fa c t o r s th a t is o f d e fin ite but unmeasurable value. 3 - ACTIVITIES SUSHODEDING THE WORKS HOSPITAL. The Works H o sp ital provides care fo r minor and major s u r g ic a l cases complete and minor and major medioal cases w ithin the lim it s o f our cap acity fo r such work. The care o f medical oases is l e f t e n tir e ly to the d is c r e tio n and ca p a city o f the h o s p it a l, is not a company fu n c tio n , adds no expense but is a great saving o f time and production in such an in tan gib le way however th a t we can not compute i t in f ig u r e s . The s u r g ic a l c a s e s , however, which are a l l accid e n t cases have a very d is t in c t d e fin it e value th a t can be expressed Ln money. This c la s s of work is a company r e s p o n s ib ility made so under the Compensation Law of th is Sta te by which the employer must of n ecessity pay the b i l l s fo r p ro fessio n al service or else pro vide the care by m aintaining a h o s p ita l w ith medical And surgiea: s t a f f . On the b a sis that t h is company had no such in s titu tio n aid would have paid out during the year 1923 to a heterogeneous group of doctors, trained or untrained, scrupulous or unscrupul- GE MUSEUM 00234 n ?o ?6 e- ous, ehosen by the individual employee in te llig e n t or otherwise, It wouE. hare paid $ 542,083 . This figure Lb obtained by taking tae yearly report of 1923 -which shows 27,762 accidents of a variety as indicated by the enclosed sheet which is a copy from our yearly report and charging against each individual accident the minimum county medical fee fo r the care o f that accident* I would lik e to emphasize at th is point the fa c t that i f we had no medical service in the p la n t, that besides a l l the inconveniences in keeping track of cases, the losses o f time and production, the legal d i f f i c u l t i e s , e t o ., that t h is oompany, aside from a ll these things would have paid out over one-half m illion dollars fo r its compensation accidents based on the minimum fee o f the Oounty o f Schenectady* I f th is figure is doubled to approach the maximum county medical fee whioh th is company surely would have levied against it for th is same amount o f work, the legitim ate expense to be expected mid be $ 1,084,166 . This figure minus the $ 73,500 repret t s what I believe to be the saving on the one tangible factor f the hospital service fo r the expenditure o f it^ ; >arly cost of v; 73,500 To reduce the figure $ 542,083 to a iandard unit pe capita as has been done in calculatin g the .standard unit of cost we find that $ 27.10 per employee per year is saved by the .rpendlture of $ 3.65 per cap ita per year or 7*4 cents per employee per day is saved by the expenditure of one cent per capita per day. To estimate th is more aoourately as i f you were expected to actually pay, multlply the above figu re s by 2 . GE MUSEUM 00235 -9" 4 - THE PREVENTION OP OCCUPATIONAL DISEASE, INFECTIOUS AND CONTAGIOUS DISEASE. liis function is exercised thru more or le ss continuous inspection of the factory thru a direct agent and thru Safety Committee a c t iv it ie s in the e ffo r t to pravent the occurrence or spread o f the above named disturbances. This is e n tire ly in tangible as fa r as estimating any concrete value in figures and it is therefore fo r the purpose o f th is paper mentioned only in passing. 5 - THE 3ANITAH AND HYGIENIC SUPERVISION 01' THE PLANT. Thia function pertains to the oare o f t o i l e t s , rest rooms, drinking fountains, and many of the ordinary public health d e ta ils . I t can be given no oonerete value fo r the purpose of th is paper and LA mentioned only in passing. 6 - EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES. This fuaotioa con sists La teaching individuals by con t a c t , groups by leoturas, and the community at large thru a r ticle s written In our -Works News. I t likewise has no eonorete value 9 that can be estimated in figu res and is mentioned only in passing. 7 - RESEARCH. This funotLon la likew ise of Lntangib value. I t con s is ts in studies of the various faotors p e r ta l ng to accidents based on s t a t is t ic s la rg e ly ; studies fo r exampi.o o f the incidents of accidents as to n a tio n a lity , degree o f i lli t e r a c y , occupation, environment, fa tig u e , e t c .; studLes of absentee ism; studies of other factors which a ffe c t the e ffic ie n c y o f workers such as temperature, humidity, environment, e tc . Along with t h is , of GE MUSEUM 00236 r ']pt*!^ -10 course, goes research in a purely medical f i e l d la the a t t e s t to perfect our service ia handling varieties of conditions that are brought to us for care and repair. 8 - INTELLIGENCE DEPARTMENT IN THE FIELD OF IBDU3THT. This function is en tirely divorced from a l l hospital work as such hut out of the close ooataot that the medioal de partment has with a l l types and kinds of workers a multitude of d iversifie d complaints other than those pertaining to physical wellbeing are ascertained* The value of th is service to the management and to the workers is intangitue and can not he c a l culated in terms of money. In conclusion, therefore, and on the basis o f the fa c ts outlined above we have the defin ite cost o f maintaining our medical department which is ^ 73,500 per year or $ 3.65 per employee per year when reduced to th is standard or one cent per day per employee when reduced to a le sse r standard. Against th is we are able to check only one part of one of the above named fun ction s, i .e . the arugical service o f our department because o f it s tangible rat are and as calculated above shows a saving of $ 542^083 per ar or $ 27.10 per employee per year 7 . 4 cents per employee ' day. This a l l i t must be remembered is calculated in the mi num and in only one branch of our sorvioe. The other branches mas- ? l e f t to speculation or l e f t to an individual much more able compute such intangible things than I am. From the figure.' already recorded which are on a very d e fin ite basis and with which 1 have been very careful to be very conservative by GE MUSEUM 00237 beeping absolutely to the minimum standard, I do not has It at to say and to f 6 l that I hare proved that I t pays and pays well even far beyond most investiran ts, to maintain a medical service in industry and to suggest that there is plenty o f room, reason and p rofit in extending that same service* GE MUSEUM 00238 IBWATLTB lOBXS* PHYSIOIAHS OOXFEBBKOB PB QSBAM. 1* M e d i c a l C o s t to the G e n e r a l E l e c t r i c Company* Dr* D* Glen Smith, Soheneotady. 3* F a t i g u e S t u d i e s * Best Periods* Seating - Postures* Dr. Goldthwaite, (Leading Orthopedic Surgeon), Boston. B iss B. X. Xinna, Fort Vayne* 5* Bye E x a m i n a t i o n s f o r V i s u a l Accommodation. L i g h t i n g , General and Joh Illu m in a t io n with a T ien to I n c r e a s in g S k i l l and Speed of P r o d u ctio n . Dr, Xnahc, Schenectady. 4, Dental Care* Industrial Dentist* 5* F a c t o r y S a n i t a t i o n I n s p e c t i o n * Dr* F* E* Sehuhmehl, Lynn* 6* O c c u p a t i o n a l P o i s o n s * Fumes, D u st, Gases, Poisons, V en tila tio n * B e tte r Working Conditions toward Increasing E f f ic ie n c y of Employees* Dr* A lic e Hamilton, Harvard U n iversity. 7* Works* P h y s i c i a n s P a r t i n A c c i d e n t P r e v e n t i o n . treatment of In f eot ion s. F irst Aid Ja rs. GE MUSEUM 00239 L ost time A c c id e n t and I n f e c t i o n Becords* Accident Charts. Dr* X* V . G a r t e n , F t * Wayne. Dr* K. J . Hanna, Baltimore* Mr* G* E* S a n f o r d , lttiM . Sil! tentative Works* Physicians Conference Program - Page 3. 8* Tuberculosis in Industry* Better Working Conditions* p ^ t / '' y V*' ^v-- ---- -v J-""- ? ' / " '>......... " 4V'"r Pr. E. G Jackson, Edison Lamp Works, Harri an. ^V" O ' e -w -i?*" Dr* B* L. Vosburg, ^C-y-tV ^-Stffiene otad y . 9* Sick Benefit Associations* I t Ur* E* L* Baltoser, Schenectady. 10* D u t i e s o f an I n d u s t r i a l E u r s e * Her training, personality and general qualifications* Paper to be presented by a nurse* Kiss Fagan, Schenectady* 11* What should we do as a Company in regard to outside care, by Doctor and visiting nurse? Ethical situation between Works and City Physicians* Dr. T. A. Little, Erie* Dr* F* A. Saylor, Bridgeport. 12* Inspection Schenectady Works Medical Department. 13 Formation of small committees to follow up conference* (a) Examination and standardization of present hospital reports. ( b ) ____________ ( ) _______________ Discussion follows each paper. e z s /f e b GE MUSEUM 0024