Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1918-11-26
CHILD WELFARE
WORK IN COUNTY
HAL TED BY FLU
Much Good Accomplished
When Epidemic Set Ini Ac-
tivitieS to Start With Re-
neWed Vigor,

chairman of the child conservation
committee OF the national council OF
| defense, has rendered the following
| interesting report to Mrs. Max Nord-
| haus, state chairman, showing the
progress Of child welfare work in Bcr-
nalillo county:
Acting upon the appeal for work.
re i'm child welfare TO attend the con-
ference in Santa Fe, to receive IN
structions in This WORK, five ladies re-
sponded; Miss Plant, Special Teacher;
Miss HorninG, School Nurse; Miss
Adele Carr, University student; Mrs.
! yesterday Chairman Educational
Work, Child Welfare; Mrs. Chas. II.
| Porter, General Chairman. Berna-
milo,
After a week of intensely interest
ng and effic ent instruction under Dr.
HeWett state directc' Of the work
and Miss Montana Hastings. mental
expert tfrom California; the ladies re-
'urned TO Bernalillo county where
work was Immediately started.
u nc FIRST sep taken was to raise
money for securing sanitary and con-
venient quarters to carry on the work
eGulred BY the government, of
weighing, measuring and examining
of children undcr six wears OF age.
This was done by having tag day
very one tagged gave from ten cents
mp ana we raised 100000
THE second step was the equIn-
ment of these rooms The front rooms
was used as the reception room where
babies were registered in this room
was a rug few rockers. the desl
| and telephone and in the center of
the room a table with literature both
in Spanish and English, dealing with
the care of the baby. its food, etc.
From this room you entered a room
without any furniture save a long
| table, where the children were dressed
ready for the examining room. The
| examining room was equipped with q
| long table on which were the measur-
ng board; on each board pad and
sheet, and sheet of MANILA paper
| which was changed after every eX-
animation In two corners of the
room were chairs with pan of water
| and lYsol also q roll Of paper towels
| for the doctors to use after every eX-
animation. The measuring board and
| stad someters Mere made of wood by
! the manual training department of
| the L. s, Indian school, who made
| twelve measuring boards and twelve
stadiometers as their contributions to
! child conservation in the state.
| With the voluntary assistance Of
all physicians in the county, a corps
of efficient workers to assist physi-
clans, and trained nurses to inspect
! applicants for examination, the work
was launched and carried on success
! fully for ten days. d. In this time over
| one hundred babies were registered,
| weighed and measured, examined and
I \ record kept of their condition,
| Eleven appointments were made each
lay, the registrar being always care
full to get telephone number or way
| the mother could be reached to re-
mind her of the appointment. After
ten days work the Child Welfare s.a-
ton was closed because of the Flu
epidemic, with two hundred and fifty
one babies registered for eXamina-
ton, who must wait now until the
quarantine is raised.
However, the child welfare worl
continued along other channels; Mrs.
| Wicker the trained nurse, who was
secured by the county commissioners
1t the instigation of the child welfare
committee, has proven invaluable in
,minp for patients during the flu ep.-
| aemic; also in doing the follow-up
work 50 necessary in many cases
where the examination of children
under six showed that immediate
medical attention was necessary. FIVE
children have been very much bene-
| fitted by the follow-up work, probably
saved from a life of ill-health.
| THE county chairman gives her en-
l . - Co. L.. ,lAt
! 1ren of the county; answering ap-
oeals for food, clothing, nurses, med
ical attention, and Is even finding
nomes for unfortunate children who's
parents were taken. Appeals fOl
clothing made through the paper
brought ready response most crafty
| ing to the committee The surplus
clothing received is to be kept for
future emergencies; corps OF womer
volunteering to sew on buttons and
mend all the clothing collected, a.
well as make new garments needed
for future work. These garments al
lra 10 be kept at the station and Civ
|. us requests come from the doctors
nurses and bureau of charities.
in connection with the child con-
seryation work. branch of the
established in Albuquerque. In this
way a supply of new clothing foi
children will be on hand throughouI
the year to clothe the poor children OF
he county special attention is given
to collecting layettes, sheets and tow
ais for child birth cases, as the COM
mittee has found that these are the
most neglected cases of all, Among
he poor II happens often times that
no preparation is made for baby's
coming and it remains without clothes
until some one brings in blanket OF
night gown, in this way only clothing
the infant.
"All public work, on account OF the
epidemic, has had to rest, nut big
nlans are being made foi future ant
permanent work, such as miik sta
IONS IN the scnoois. as wei as moi
lunches through the rural districts,
y,ore recreation centers, the estab'
fishing of a day nursery IN Alpu
u,eruue and a free clinic the year
round as well as playground lol
the children. Al
in Albuqueraue, number o.
housewives have expressed their wiz
ingness to keep IA community COW
among two or three famllles, II
mixer can be found to do the wor
or reasonable amount.
1.-THE child welfare committee Is en-
couraging the Boy Scouts IN hefha
lilo county to take up milking as enc
Of their patriotic activities thus ma
terially assisting the children OF inc
county. and helping themselves carr
some extra pocket money.
"a number of the diaries nave eN'
pressed their willingness to teacn hoy'
from twelve IN the art OF mixing
a.,A Tho nnrn nf cnn.s y