The colored American., 1902-03-08
THE PROFESSIONAL NURSE IN
NEW ENGLAND.

South where | was trained for a new
field of labor in the North.
As nurse | find advantages and dis
advantages incident to this new life but
| have learned IN something less than
year to live in it and love it..
| am under many obligations to kind
friends who recommended me to the
leading physicians in the town where
now practice. Thus it was not so difficult
for me to at once obtain and achieve
measure of success, as 1t otherwise
would have been. With a total of TWEEN
ty-hve nurses in town and myself the
only one of color, idle moments have
been few since my arrival; my longest
interval between cases has been but three
weeks, and the rest at that time, coming
from a case of ten weeks. much needed.
The advantages North for colored
nurses are many. | have had the priv
iIege of visiting the largest hospitals in
New England, and as a nurse have been
allowed to witness several very inn
portant operations in such hospitals.
Have found the doctors and nurses
pleasant and agreeable and both have ex-
pressed desire to help me in my pro-
fessiOn. One is not reminded of the
fact OF belonging to another race unless
one individually, /. e, personally, first
shows some feeling about it. Every
where you are made to feel that you are
one of the family if you are the right
person in the right place You easily
gain the confidence of your patients and
they in turn grow interested in you,
want to keep in touch with you, visit
you, and want you to visit them to take
tea and spend evenings with them So
Cially. All of this is pleasant TO think
of. You know then they are your
friends, and true ones. 1t happens that
my entire home life, my practice and
my time spent socially, IS with white
friends
The disadvantages, especially to one
who like myself has race pride, and
many friends in my own race in the
Sunny Southland, are that one cannot
so well keep posted upon the work of
our race as if in direct touch with its
members, and although | read all of the
printed matter | can secure in the line
OF our books, magazines and newspa-
perS, many matters would be clearer
and of more personal interest, if | could
talk them over with members of my
race.
l am sorry to say I have not thus far
found the congenial and hoSpitable spirit
found in the South, although each one
out of FIVE is Southern born; but even
two years of life in the North seems suf-
ficient TO change this spirit so completely
that an introduction at each time of
meeting becomes necessary
Very few of our race are here rep
resented in professional line; not a
nurse or doctor within ten miles and
then only one doctor and two nurses.
This is another disadvantage-tha we
do not have more members of our race
IN the North practicing their various
professions The field is wide and there
is room for many, and it would be a
great means of race elevation to come
forward and show the good work we
can do for others as we'll as for our
selves. Each one adds a stepping stone
in helping to solve the grave problems
that confront us.
/ was recently asked by a very prom
inent citizen here why there were not
others here following some professional
line. and he assured me if here they
would do we'll
There should be colored doctor and
at least two colored nurses in every
New England town. They are needed
by both white and colored people to
prove what We are doing intellectually,