The Pleasantville press. (Pleasantville, N.J.) 1912-1929, 1922-04-08
Visiting Nurse Assn.
Holds Annual Meeting
Interesting Report of Nursing
Service Rendered by Secre-
tary, Mrs. E. G.. Shreve.
Four Thousand Visits

OF the Committee on NurS-
ing activities of the Atlantic City
Chapter of the Red Cross was held
Tuesday evening at the High School
Auditorium. The following interest
ing program was rendered:
Piano Duet-Miss Irma Stiles, Miss
Eleanor Conover.
Soprano Solo-Miss Irma Stiles.
Aesthetic Dancing-Jeannette Mac
Donough, Gertrude Marlborough.
Cho-Cho, Jr., and the Keep Well'
Chores.
Chorus-Health Song.
Report of Atlantic County Red
Cross Work-Mrs. E. G.. Shreve.
Good Health Play.
Duet-Mrs. H. Hogan, Mr.. Souder.
Chorus-Good Health Song.
Mrs. E. G. Shreve, Secretary of the
Atlantic City Chapter, and Chairman
of the Chapter Nursing Committee,
gave an account of the Red Cross
County Nursing Service from it's be-
ginning and a report of h work
done. She spoke of the plans to es-
tablish a nurse, which plans were
held up by the World War, and the
opportunity after the Armistice was
signed, to finance the nursing work
uhu ldiDCo Jul IL wal ~
the Red Cross.
The Atlantic City Chapter establish
ed and maintained the service at a
cost of $500 for sixteen months, to
January LIST, 1921, when the Atlantic
County Board of Freeholders made an
appropriation of $500 for the salary
of the nurse during 1921. At the
same time the running expenses of
the nursing work was assumed by the
Pleasantville Branch of the Red
Cross, leaving the Atlantic Chapter
free to extend the nursing service to
the Hammonton district by placing a
nurse on duty there in October, 1921.
When the Ford car furnished by the
Red Cross, in the beginning, after two
years continuous service could no
longer be used, Mrs. H. G.. Munro Or
ganized and conducted a successful
campaign for a. new Ford coupe, and
in less than two weeks, in August,
1921, over 500 had been raised, the
old car sold and the new car on the
road.
Since the nursing service was es-
tablished in September, 1919, 488 pa
tents nave been cared for and over
1000 visits have beer made by the
nurses. During the year 1921 alone
spffie number Of patients under care was
224 and the calls made were 1854. OF
these patients only rs were paying
patients, the rest being free patients,
or Metropolitan Life Insurance Com
pany industrial policy holders who are
given nursing care by the Red Cross
nurse, the service being paid for by
the company at a fixed cost per visit.
The Nursing Committee has been
most fortunate in securing nurses
well trained in public health work.
Miss Morstadt, the first nurse, made it
possible for her successors, Miss Ida
Stephenson and Miss Loud, to carry
on the work until Miss Anna Henschel
could finish her public health training
and qualify for county nurse. After
a Years service she left for the West,
and Miss Mary Riddig took her place.
The expenses of the nursing serv-
ice, paid by the Pl%easantville Red
Cross during the year 1921. when the
nurse made 1854 visits to 224 patients
in thirty different communities of At
lantic County, were as follows:
Rent, $4,000; electric light, gas and
phone, $56.07; drugs and supplies,
$29.81; lumber for shelves, $22.52; up
keep of car, $543.12; emergency fund
for nurse, $59.12; salary of extra
nurse q week., $4,000; postage,
$500; new Ford coupe, $80O.6S; total,
81 ,9O4.32, paid by Pleasantville Red
Cross; salary of nurse, paid by Board
of Freeholders, $4,000; total ex-
penses, $3.334.32.
Receipts of Pleasantyille Red Cross,
including Absecon and Shore road,
and the nursing service during year
1921, and used to defray expenses of
service, were as follows:
From patients fees, $181.00; from
Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. for
nursing care of sick industrial policy
holders, $378.00; from rent of living
apartment to nurse, $4,000; from
donations to Red Cross, $56.26; from
Atlantic tuberculosis Committee for
relief of county tuberculosis patients
in care of the nurse, $500; from fund
raised by Mrs. Munro for new Ford
car, including sale of old car, $941.00;
from 1921 Red Cross membership roll
call, $209.75; total receipts for 1921,
$1,971.31.
The county nursing service has had
the hearty cooperation of the Allan
tic City Hospital, where many pa
tents have been admitted for exam
ildlioh, lCdtllCnt, opCl dtIOlo VI al ,
Children's Seashore House, where sew
eral county children have been cared
for months at a time; Pine Rest
clinic, where suspected tuberculosis
patients have been examined and ad-
mitted When necessary. The Atlantic
County Almshouse and Insane Hospi-
tai, Overseers of the Poor, State Con-
stabulary and other county and town
ship officials in all parts of the county
have co-operated. The county super
intendent of schools has been most
helpful.
Philadelphia and Camden hospitals
have cared for cases referred to them
and have co-operated with Red Cross
home service in different chapters in
looking up ex-seryice men and their
families. The New Jersey Depart
ment of Health and the Church Mis-
sion of Help of Trenton have enlisted
the aid of the nurse. We are indebted
to the Needlework Guild of Absecon
and Pleasantville for supplies of cloth
ing and household linen for poor pa
tients, and to the Atlantic Tubercu-
losis Committee for supplies and
money used in supplying proper nour-
ishment to tuberculosis patients in
their homes.
The physicians of Atlantic City and
County and Ocean City have, without
exception, extended their help, coop
Grafton II advice.