Milford chronicle., 1954-09-03
Ben Wright Addresses
The ROtarians And
Graduate Nurses
3N7I11 II p Nla0I
president Of the class, responded
on behalf Of the graduates.
teontlnued from nrat 80

tcOntinued from nrat pagel
/ president Of the class, responded
on behalf of the graduates.
Mr.. Wright's talk follows.
Nursing, as nursing, cannot
change. No matter what the period
Of history may be, nursing is still
primarily care in the healing of the
sick. Before considering the chang
es occurring in human relation
ships in nursing and I'M the chang
ing duties Of the nurse, we should
think seriously about the changing
world in which we live. 1t is man
whom we tend, and those who ad-
minister to his needs must newt
ably be affected by the social en-
vironment in which they live and
work.
Recently we have emerged from
a Second World War which saw de-
struction Of every kind, emotional
distress, and a War which left
Christian homes with a trend
strongly toward that of material
ism.
Medical and scientific progress
IS so rapid that it cannot be
grasped easily and understood by
man. We are so confused that we
imagine evil to be good, and even
mistake good for evil.
In this disturbed, uncertain
world it needs real effort to remain
people of quality and not Just eff
cient people. Nurses must take
their part and place along with
all other Christian associations in
helping to bind right thinking
people together and learn and try
to teach others that civilization is
not power, but respect for human
rights. 1t is the love of man for
man.
Because of the crisis and the
conflicts through which the world
is passing, there has been greater
progress in scientific discovery
during the last fifty years than had
happened previously in hundreds
of years. This has lead to great ad-
vances and changes in the medical
world, with corresponding, though
less obvious changes, in the duties
and responsibilities of nurses.
Nurses, like the general practi-
TONERS, are always at the bedside
of the patient
A hundred years ago the medical
attitude was more satisfying to the
patient, who was regarded as a
real person. The work of Pasteur
and Lister, the discovery of anes-
thetics, rOentgenOgraphy, bio-chem-
istry, bacteriolOgy, ETC., and more
recently advances in chemOtherapy.
have shortened many previously
long, tedious and often fatal i'll
nesses and have made possible new
developments in surgery. The in
creasing knowledge of mental
health and the development of psy-
chiatric treatment all have had
their repercussiOns on nursing.
The emphasis on science is def
mite.
ANY tendency to regard illness
and the reaction to scientific treat
ment as of greater interest than
the patient himself is a passing
phase due probably to the unpre-
cedented and rapid growth of new
knowledge in these fields. 1t is of
the utmost Importance to insure
that the patient Is not forgotten in
carrying out numerous new tech
hiques.
Nursing, being allied to medicine.
must advance alongside of it. but
nurse patient relationship should
secure the greatest consideration
for the patient, his wishes and
feelings.
The need for good nursing in
serious illness is no less important
than ever, but a nurse must be able
20 judge which of her manifold
duties should have priority. She
must be Obliged to abandon for a
time the comfort and care she is
giving to one patient to assist with
g blood TRANSMISSION, or to give an
injection of some drug, the admin
lstratiOn of which, because Of its /
lie saving urgency, cannot be 1
postponed. She may have to ask a
patient to wait for her human care
while she administers scientific
treatment, none the less humanity.
to another.
Certain circumstances contribute /
10 some alteration in the nurses
duty, the need for nurses and the /
amount Of nursing care required