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Auckland Star, Volume LXX, Issue 20, 25 January 1939, Page 13

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HOSPITAL SERVICES. CRITICISM RESENTED. TBACSOBBS nramm BJBPUT. Strong objection has been taken by the group of young men responsible for the Sunday school services in the children's wards to the comments made at a meeting this week by members of the Auckland Hospital Board. Their work was severely criticised by the medical superintendent, Dr. J." W. Craven, who declared that the services represented "just a travesty of a Sunday school," also by the complaints committee of the board, which recommended that the services should be suspended, as they interfered with ward work. This statement in particular is resented by the young men who conduct the services. The leader, Mr. Arthur Guptell, stated to-day that he and his assistants had never* had the slightest friction with members of the nursing staff. '"We have always worked in with them and have never entered the ward until they have given us permission," he said. "We leave immediately our time limit is reached, even if we are in the middle of a talk; we have never encroached on the visiting hour and we have never received a complaint.

'While we are taking the services there is seldom any ward work going on and oar impression has been that the nurses are glad to have some of their charges taken off their hands for the half hear we are there. Sometimes a, patient has needed urgent attention, but the nurses have merely placed a screen around the bed and gone ahead with their job, without asking us to hold up the school." Mr. Guptell, who has conducted Sunday school services at the hospital for the past five years, also took exception to the statements of the superintendent and board chairman that no useful purpose was being served and that religious instruction was more a matter for parents. "The work by no means ends in the hospital." he said. "We go to the children's homes after they have left the hospital, and the fact that we are invited there by the parents shows that our work is appreciated. We go to homes all around the city and also teach children from the country. Parents* Neglect 4»f D«ty. "It was also stated that no good is done by our work. In reply, I would point out that sometimes we cannot proceed with the lessons because the children" are asking so many questions. Our work there has shown us that the majority of parents have neglected to give any religious instruction at aIL So much for the statement that such teaching is a matter for parents. We have found Maori children without any knowledge of. religion whatsoever. One lad had never heard of Jesus Christ. "Then it is stated that our services are 'somewhat unorthodox,' and that discipline is difficult to maintain. Our services are exactly like an ordinary Sunday school. We have a few wellknown choruses and then one of us— there are five teachers in all—give a ten-minute address. If there is any time left we talk to the boys individually. Is there anything unorthodox about that? "Admittedly we have found some of the lads a bit unruly, but we deny that discipline is, in any way, loose. We are perfectly capable of keeping the children under control. If they refuse to behave we send for the nurses—but we have seldom been forced to do that in the five years -we have been conducting the school. The statement, that there is too much excitement is erroneous. How can the singing of hymns be exciting. The only thing it does is to bring a little diversion to the boys. Ask them whether or not they like the services!" Mr. Guptell added that when the wards were closed two years ago, owing to a typhoid menace, the services were so popular that the boys called to their teachers to start the choruses from the rail outside the ward windows. That surely indicated how popular the Sunday school was. Parents were neglecting their duty and the group was attempting to do it for them. If its work was stopped a wrong would be done, since the services were confined to simple Bible teachings. There was nothing in the least controversial and the lessons were strictly undenominational. The accusations made were bigoted.