The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1917-03-06
VISITING NURSE
BOARD meeting
Directors Were In Session This.
Morning For Routine Work
and Discussion Of
Reports.
ONE DAYS ACTIVITIES
A Nurses Occupation Gives oppor-
tunity to Sec the Kindly
Side Of Human
Nature.

The board OF directors OF the Visit
ing Nurse association held Its. regu-
liar meeting this morning. In the abb
sence of the president. Vice President
Miss Agnes Trinible presided. Rou-
tine reports were made and special
reports on the county tuberculosis
work was also submitted. Some OF
the garments recently made by the
ladies OF the Congregational church
and OF the Baptist church, were
shown The garments are all Tor
made. Miss Alexander made the
nurses report for the month OF Feb
ruary as follows: Nursing service in
the district, number OF visits, instruc-
tive, "A; nursing, II: friendly, 40; ex-
ira visits out of regular hours, 4;
total, 165. Three cases We're dis
missed as cured. two died. one dis
missed as improved and one referred
to hospital for care.
Nursing service In Infant Welfare
department prenatal visits, A; pro-
phylactic, rs: feeding. Il; material
aid, 2: total, SO. In the Metropolitan
nursing service, SO visits were made.
The tabulated nurses report gives
an indefinite report in a way and
perhaps ;sGpecffic report of one
nurses work for just one day will
give, an idea of the nature OF the
service being done. There are al
ways maternal cases to be cared for;
on this particular day the nurse had
visited two cases. had bathed the
mother and bathed the baby and
dressed 1t and made both comfort
able for the day. She then went to
visit very old woman who was
Ix,k vn1ry~a In -
visits regularly but who did need the
comfort of a friend. The old lady's
daughter had died in another city and
to break the news Of the death to
her would be a shock which she
could not stand. so the nurse went TO
see her about noon and told her that
her daughter was very i'll with pneu-
unonia, and then In the evening In
the kindest way possible, told her OF
her daughters death. Just after noon
The nurse was called to see a fisher
man, who had tuberculosis In its last
stages. She went to the house and
found the surroundings bad as they
would almost OF necessity be in the
case OF a sick man living alone. One
comfort which the nurses find is that
there ID nearly always kind neigh
Dor and hero was no exception to the
rule The nurse built up the fire and
she and the neighbor put water on
the stove to heat and while 1t was
heating, the nurse went down town
for clean clothes and bedding from
the v. N. A. supplies. A part of wha:
was needed had already been given
by the Ladies of Charity. With the
bundle she went back to her patient
The house was first scrubbed and
cleaned and aired: then the 7atien,
was bathed and his bed made clean
and comfortable. Nourishing food
the kind that he needed, was prepar
ed. The daily visits after that were
OF course made.
Every day year in and year out
here in Keofuli. this sort of work Is
being done. The nursing service is
all intelhgently done under the di
rection of the physician in charge
The nurses have been most success
full in keeping the babies under theil
care, well. They are visited regularly
until they are two years old and ther
+. visited occasionally until they react
school age.
The nurses are preparing for the
Lee county tuberculosis survey. ant
are listing DR.. Fuller's statistics o
conditions in the city. The delay II
This Work mas Deen ocCdsiolleu ny liz
executive office in Des Moines an(
not by the local association.
Among the needs reported at th'
meeting this morning is for sheets
The supply of bed linen Is about ex
hausted. 1t is not the custom to giv'
sheets to patients If 1t can be avoid
ed, but they are very frequently loan
ed.