The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1919-09-04
PUBLIC HEALTH NURSING.

Women have always concerned
themselves with problems of health
and sickness.
In the average family. mother is
the health officer" ready to bind
up a cut finger, administer the nee
essary remedies for simple ailments,
and firm to impress the necessity
for preventive measures, such as
rubbers and umbrellas.
At school. women--teachers and
school nurses--prove that health can
be taught and link together the
home and the school in the effort to
prevent or correct the physical de-
fects which the school doctor points
out.
The touch of the trained nurse,
with its power to soothe and to heal,
is second in it's comfort in sickness
only to the trained eve and mind OF
the doctor. To great masses of peo-
pie. the visiting or public health
nurse, is a constant friend and ad-
visor in health and an immediate
and grateful aid in sickness, more
intimately in touch with the family
and the home than any other agent
of health. More and more the bene-
fits OF medical science are being taxi
en- to the individual man, woman and
child by women, either as visiting
child hygiene. school, tuberculosis,
or industrial nurses.
Yet, though women touch the
problem of public health from all its
angles, governments have been slow
to recognize their Importance In the
new national health programs which
have come as part OF the preparation
for reconstruction. England Is now
to have for the first time ministery
of health, a cabinet office on par
with the great offices Of war, finance
and foreign affairs But the pro-
| posal to make p woman assistant
secretary of health was defeated.
In America. however, signs are not
| lacking that we may take a more
| reasonable and a more just point oi
| view. Bills creating a secretary OF
| health the head a new national de-
partment OF health, have been intro
duced to both the senate and the
house. Congressman McDuffie OF
/ Alabama, according to letter ad-
dressed to the National Organization
| for Public Health Nursing, plans Ia
| lncluOe IN his Dlil pIoNisioh io'
bureau of public health nursing,
headed by a woman chief, a trained
public health nurse. Senator owen
of Oklahoma, who has introduced
int othe senate a bill similar in its
| provisions, has also declared that he
is emphatically in favor OF the in
clusion of a subdivision OF public
health nursing, headed by a nurse
under the secretary of health. Sen
ator France of Maryland. to whose
committee on public health and
quarantine Senator Owens bill has
been referred, has stated his inten
ton to urge either bureau OF pub
lie health nursing or a woman assist
ant to the secretary OF health.
Such a national bureau of public
health nursing would be invaluable
in promoting public health nursing
through the country, and in en-
couraging high standards in the worl
done in each local community /
would be able to assist states
counties or cities whenever they de
sire Il, in organizing public healt
nursing campaigns in hygiene, san
tation, and simple home care @
7 sickness. In case of national ep
, demic, the federal government woul
be able. were such n bureau estal
lished to send forces of nurses, 9
we'll as doctors, TO the spot where th
disease was raging.
Best OF all, however, such actio