The commercial. (Union City, Tenn.) 190?-193?, 1921-07-08
THE BABY CLINIC
SAVES INFANT LIVES

; A Baby Clinic in town is a healtl
measure which should appeal to ev
cry citizen and especially to ever!
mother, for it is definite step takeI
in the direction of saving the live
of babies not so much by helping
sick babies get we'll as by KEEPING
WELL BABIES FROM GETTING
SICK. When such clinics were es
tablished in New York City it re
duced the infant death rate by two
thirds of the usual number which
meant a saving of 4,125 infant lives
The principal requirements fol
such clinic are the services of good
doctor, a nurse to help him make
examinations and a centrally located
place where mothers may bring their
babies for a thorough examination.
The equipment for baby clinic need
| not be elaborate or expensive: a
pair of baby scales, an extra blanket
or two to throw over the babies when
they are being examined, warm,
bright room, and some implements
for examining threats, eyes, as
the doctor may carry with him.
In examining the babies brought
to the clinic the nurse stands at the
right hand of the doctor; she inter
views the mother, weighs the baby
and gets it ready for the doctor to
examine. Then she keeps the record
of what the doctor finds and she ex-
plains in careful detail to the mother
Just how the doctors orders should
be carried out, how the baby should
be dressed and bathed, how cows
milk should be prepared to make it
safe, if breast feeding is impossible,
and after the baby leaves the clinic
the nurse visits the mother in her
home and shows her the best ways
of caring for the baby with the APP
planes she has at hand.
One hundred thousand babies can
be saved every year if they are prop
erly cared for is the belief of scien-
lists who understand the care of ba-
bies, and a baby clinic is the chief
method by which this great work
can be done.
During the summer months the
largest number of babies die due to
improper feeding because in food not
kept perfectly clean germs multiply
much more rapidly in warm weather
than in cold, and this poisons thou
sands of babies every year. Then,
too, many mothers give babies food
which it is impossible for them to
digest and this lack of understand
ing of babys food needs is one of
the principal causes of the infant
death rate.
Every baby should gain a fixed |
amount each week; a loss of a pound |
or two of weight makes very little
difference to an adult but it means
much to baby, for it is an indication
of its development, and pound or
two lost by baby means as much as
ten or fifteen pounds lost by an
adult.
When baby fails to gain the re-
CURED number of ounces each week
1t means that there is something
his food or his health. All
babies SHOULD BE WATCHED and
this watching is one of the main
functions of baby clinic.
1t is comparatively simple mat
ter to keep a we'll baby well; 1t is
4 difficult and often an impossible
task to help sick baby get we'll. The
Baby Clinic helps the mother to ac-
,omplish both objects. but its most
important work is KEEPING the
WELL baby from getting sick.
The organizing of baby clinic Is
/ valuable asset to town; it should
commend the interest of all the peo-
pie and once attention 10 called to the
good work accomplished by Baby
Clinic, it is safe to predict that
health officers, doctors, mothers and
influential citizens will all combine
o establish and support permanent
Baby Clinic.-Contribute by the De-
,artment of Nursing, Southern Dr.
rision, American Red Cross.