The sun., 1919-08-24
RED CROSS REVEALS
PEACE PROGRAMME
Plans Nationwide Activity to
Promote Public Health
and Prevent Illness.
NURSING TO BE FEATURE
Thirty Thousand Service Men
Still in Hospitals Will Be
Aided.

WASHINGTON, Aug. 23.-Following this
| announcement of the third Red Cross
roll call 10 he held November to IL.
| when the American people will be asked
to renew their membership for 1920 and
contribute s15,o00,o0O for the future
work of the organization, an outline OF
the peace time programme OF the Amer
| lean Red Cross was given to-day.
Foremost will be nationwide activity
| for the promotion of public health and
hand in hand with this crusade will GO a
the countrys nursing resources; the
| broadening of Red Cross home service,
, which In the war proved so helpful
| through the assistance 1t was able to
| give the families of soldiers and sailors,
! to be of general usefulness where other
social agencies are lacking greatly in
/ creased Junior Red Cross activities. ex-
! tension of Red Cross facilities for
emergency disaster relief completion of
relief measures for the victims of the
war in this country and overseas and
] preparation TO fulfill whatever duties
may be laid upon 1t as the official volun-
/ teer relief society authorized to assist
| the army and navy.
| VIII Try to Prevent Illness.
| The plan of the Red Cross public
! health campaign calls for cooperation
| with other existing health promotion and
| disease prevention organizations through
out the United States, acting by itself
where no health agency now exists, In
an effort to reduce the high mortality
due to preventable disease and to i'm
prove general health conditions
! Public health nursing will be one OF
/ the important features OF this campaign.
Red Cross public health nurses will be
assigned to az many small communities
| as possible thus extending to the rural
| population the bedside nursing, school
| inspection. classes in hygiene and home
! nursing and search for tuberculosis ana
other preventable disease that has been
SO effective in the cities and larger
towns.
| In this connection ii Is planned to
offer to every woman in America in
! struction in home sanitation. hygiene.
care of the sick and dietetics. thus pro-
viding first hand knowledge of how to
keep the family we'll and what to do
! where illness or accident cannot be
svoided These courses are now being
F, introduced in the public schools and COD
leges and are offered TO department
store employees, factory operatives, girl
I
! them TO help combat infant and child
mortality, malnutrition. unsanitary hv-
| Ing conditions, preventable disease and
| even epidennics IN their own homes.
The seven thousand public health
! nurses in the United States are far too
few TO meet the ever increasing demands
for their services, and funds are needed
for the establishment OF scholarships for
the postgraduate training of nurses re-
| "A Ia nf
public health work. for the development
! of the necessary teaching staffs and for
I research work.
Red Cross home service among the
| families of American soldiers and sailors
has brought out the important fact that
in 90 per cent. OF the places where home
service is now operating there is no
| other social work agency Accordingly
there is an imperative demand. national
| in scope, that this service, with its
thousands of highly trained workers, be
continued and extended to assist all
needy families In communities where
other neighborly relief is not at hand.
| Wr,re social agencies are established
the Red Cross will act as IA cooperating
| : ID coordiuating organization when re-
quested to do SO.
As always in its long history of gen
eral usefulness, the Red Cross must hold
itself ready for instant relief service in
time of public disaster. such great
fires foods. cyclones, shipwrecks. earth
uuakes, pestilence. famine and epidemics.
| Experience in the war and the great o.
:anization built up through that emer-
( gency will with quickly available funds
make this branch OF Red Cross activity
more effective than ever before.
Juniors to Aid Relief Abroad.
The Junior Red Cross, with it's mil
lions OF members In the schools, public
and private. throughout the United
States, has laid plans calling for $780,
900 for relief work abroad, this amount
constituting so per cent. of the money
the Juniors raise the remainder to be
used for local relief in cooperation with
home service. 1t is also planned TO
have the junior member supplement and
| assist in the work of the national or
ganization wherever possible. with es-
.pecial regard to the needs of children.
The turning over to the American Red
Cross OF the surplus MEDICAL and sur
Gical supplies and supplementary food
sores of the American army abroad for
distribution among the still suffering ma
tive population, together with the for
eign relief programme still being carried
out largely in Poland, the Balkans and
Siberia, necessitates the continuance OF
Red Cross operations overseas This en-
tails the maintenance of medical, nursing
and general relief units and the estab-
fishing under American standards Of
training schools, tho graduates of which
| will be able to carry to fruition the hui
manitarian efforts the American Red
Cross initiated in war stricken lands.
The distribution OF food and clothing
among penniless returning refugees also
cannot be completed until well into the
future
The American Red Cross by its Con-
Eressional charter Is committed to assist
the army and navy whenever called
vice will depend upon the future military
policy Congress determines, 1t will UNI
doubtedly be greater than heretofore. in
proportion to the increases In the stand
ing army and navy Congress authorizes
Whatever the demands. the Red Cross
must be prepared to meet them.
Until rehabilitation Is completed. and
after the Red Cross military relief or.
ganization will continue to function
Thirty thousand service men still In the
military hospitals, many crippled for life
require Red Cross attention. Hospital
canteen and motor service must con-
tinue. The fifty base hospitals organ
lied by the Red Cross before the United
States entered the war and turned over
to the army during hostiliti4s are back
from the field and must be reorganized
and held ready for any call. civil or mil
itary
Completion OF Red Cross work for uhe
soldiers disabled in the lighting and