Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1917-10-25

ideas along the lines of conducting
hospital and training schools were all
wrong. One restriction after the 9th
er has been imposed upon the institu-
tons by the State Board of Nurse
Examiners, whose arbitrary rulings
have played havic in the nursing pro-
fession of today.
The board from time to time passes
rules which control the admission 10,
and the graduation of nurses from
Training Schools. The rules may be
unjust and wrong, but the manage
ment is told just what to do. Then if
some difficulty arises, the hospital,
large or small, is Immediately dropped
from the recognized list. These hos
pitfalls are designated reputable and
we are free to assume that the others
are disreputable.
The best class of nurses come from
young women who have had good home
training, Grammar School education
and who are from bread-winning fami-
lies. Nurses are frequently retained
in the training schools who are incom-
petent and unsatisfactory simply be-
cause they have had a year of High
School education, in compliance with
the requirements of the State Board of
Nurse Examiners. DAUGHTERS OF
THOUSANDS OF MECHANICS
HAVE BEEN REJECTED FROM
THE TRAINING SCHOOLS BE-
CAUSE THEY HAVE NOT BEEN IN
A POSITION TO OBTAIN THE ONE
YEAR OF HIGH SCHOOL EDUCA-
TON, BUT WHO ARE OTHERWISE
QUALIFIED.
To illustrate the present shortage,
short time ago our hospital called
up to secure nurse for a sick family
Out Of the twenty registries only one
had nurse available. The Central
Registry in the city of Chicago, which
is closely associated with the Illinois
State Board of Nurse Examiners, ad-
vised sending a visiting nurse the next
afternoon. The rich must be cared for
if sick, but God help the poor.
This shortage has aroused in the
graduate and pupil nurse the desire
for greed and gain and has removed
the spirit of love for the profession
and the idea of sacrifice. Discipline in
the Training Schools has been mater
tally interfered with.
If simply one requirement was
dropped for entrance into the Train
ing Schools, namely, one year in High
School, five thousand applications
could be accepted Immediately.
The last Ohio legislature passed a
law removing the requirement of a
year in High School, Governor Cox,
unwisely in my opinion, vetoed the
bill, influenced by the Nurses Trust, |
believe
AS a result of the rulings of the
State Boards hundreds Of alleged nur-
| ses have been thrust upon the country
viz, those who have taken high pres
sure courses covering six weeks or
two months of lectures and supple
| mented, as it was in our Cook County
| Hospital, seventy-two hours of
| actual hospital work This move was
| directed largely by woman who was
| not even trained nurse. It does not
| seem that a move of this kind would
be just or fair to the nurses who spend
three years in Training School.
AS A MATTER OF FACT, THE
FIRST ESSENTIAL IN THE CARE
OF THE SICK IS TO HAVE A SUI
FICIENT NUMBER OF WELL
| TRAINED NURSES. The number of
nurses now IN the country is based
on peace footing, but even on peace
footing the number is painfully in
| adequate to care for the sick civilian
population. Now this is the gist of
The whole affair: Shall we neglect
our soldier boys at home or abroad
and which represent the cream of our
manhood, or neglect the civilian pop
ulation? AS our nursing force is now
organized, we must either neglect one
Or the other
What is the solution for this prob
lem? Preparedness should be the pol
icy of this country, and it should COW
er everything from the candidates for
the army to the care of the sick. We
are drafting our men to fight for lib
erty of mankind. Why not draft our
women, not as soldiers, but as nurses?
Now is the time to do this If a weak
ness is found in unpreparedness in the
care for either our soldiers or our civ
ilians, it behooves every loyal Ameri-
can to do his part and not countenance
any coterie of workers who are simp-
ly building up trust that could be
far reaching and can have no bene-
fetal results.
To correct conditions further, the
maximum number of nurses possible
should enter training schools immedi-
atp1V YOunU women in rnOd boa1+b