Refugee German Jewish physicians are being absorbed into the life of Soviet Russia in increasing numbers and are gaining the respect of the authorities and the people.
The work of a group of doctors brought here recently by the Agro-Joint, a Jewish organization, and employed by the Narcomzdrow–Commissariat of Health–has prompted local Soviet authorities to pay tribute to their efficiency and service.
The Agro-Joint reports receiving many letters of appreciation from the medical departments of various towns and regions. There is a general demand for more refugee physicians.
Official letters say they not only make excellent specialists, but take an active part in the social labors of collective settlements and rapidly learn Russian to qualify them for better positions.
The peasants in districts where the refugees practice frequently attempt to show their gratitude for being cured of ailments by presenting the refugee doctors with gifts, addresses and, in some cases, a month’s free keep in rest homes.
One collective settlement gave a doctor free use of the collective’s treasured automobile to “do away with the disadvantage of village as compared with town” in making his rounds.
The salary of a refugee physician ranges from 500 to 800 rubles a month with house and garden free. Women’s salaries vary between 125 and 300 rubles monthly.
A conference between German-Jewish doctors and Health Commissariat officials will be held shortly to bring about a closer relationship between them. The conference will be held at Simferapol, capital of the Crimean Republic.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.