Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1920-01-07
equate medical attention from pri
vate physicians and nurses.

vefe nhvssrJsns and nuraea
,. -.-,,.. -.
We ale Mole VI ICES .Ai s,..s ..
me ..oI,es VI cH paoies
irom neat IN sIowosa 'enenensS, -.
.reeA.ns " ueael nvm Se
we kIow less OF .ne nsausnip 20
wnicn DAoles anu ! Mo.ae n1 Er. -
eeal ~ e. .s us ISL. a.ator :.
use . mles ~ .ne at,Sn ~ onr
~ u. noolon ~ 80.
oounuless wes ~. oi's 60. .me .aun us
e z. Yot .;. .ns. or uo' ~
io.'n = pa'ien' - a!'
In one case. the doctor Travelled
IL miles through drliting snow 70
see = cnila IN cohvuisions. Ater
r1oing several hours ne lost MS way
IN the night ana nad 10 return 70
town. me next morning ne se.
OUT again ana .eacheo the nome W
= O'CLOCK out the oaoy was dead.
In homes like these, several miles
from q telephone or postoffice. the
family is shut OF from assistance
through the winter. One mother on
q northwestern ranch sent to the
nearest town for a prescription for
her baby. 1t was two months be-
fore 1t came, for the roads were in
such condition that no mail could
be sent over them. In such dis
tricts a public health nurse is a
vital necessity.
Nurses selected to care for moth
ers and infants, according to stand
ards ! Of the children's bureau,
should not only be graduates with
hospital training. but should have
practical experience in public
health work. A.poor nurse is worse
than none at all, in the opinion OF
the bureaus experts. They cite in
this connection the incident of an
inexperienced mother who engaged
nurse for her first baby. The girl
had had only a correspondence
course in nursing, and no practical
experience. The first three days
the nurse fed the baby cows milk
and sweetened water. Then she
tried various patent foods. She
kept the baby asleep with dope
nearly all the time, and when ii
was 10 days old it died.
The public health nurse approx
ed by the children's bureau is thor
oughly grounded in hygiene, proper
feeding for babies of various ages,
emergency remedies, care of new
born babies and their mothers. She
cannot stop in home to take care
OF a case for several days, as she
has too many patients in her
charge. but she does give as much
attention to each family as posi-
Bile, and she leaves the mother with
a definite idea OF what to do.
Besides visiting the families oil
her district, the nurse conducts
meetings and councils at a central
point, where the mothers from the
surrounding country can brine
their babieA Here they can ask
questions, and see demonstrations
! and have the baby looked over tC
see il he is growing as he should.
This sort of thing is done here
and there throughout the country
where public health nurses and
doctors are maintained by COM
munity or state. The federal ap.
preparation would extend the work
and place nurses in the many coun.
ties where they are so much need.
ed, but where the population is toe
scant or' too poor to support then
by taxation or subscription.
Besides providing for mainte'
nance of nurses and doctors, The
proposed bill would establish es
pecial care for mothers and infant:
at home or in hospitals. This ap
plies especially to mothers in out
of-the-way districts. 1t would DOS
sib1y take the form of maternit,
hospitals at the county seats, ant