TRAINING OF NURSES

Press, Volume C, Issue 29666, 9 November 1961, Page 6

TRAINING OF NURSES

“Reappraisal Needed”

(N.Z. Press Association) WANGANUI, Nov. 8. Nursing-training schemes should be critically examined, said the Director-General of Health (Dr. H. B. Turbott) in Wanganui today, when addressing the annual conference of the Hospital Officers’ Association. “Many of your hospitals are short-staffed, but I am told the general situation is improving. However, there is a grim shortage of midwives and maternity nurses,” be said. “At July 31 this year, we had 249 vacancies for midwives and maternity nurses The country maternity hospitals in some places are not fully occupied, which accentuates the staff shortage, because maternity nurses and midwives must stay there, although their skills are not in constant use. "Thorough Reappraisal" “I hope to establish a widely-representative group to work with a sub-commit-tee of the Nurses' and Midwives’ Board in thorough reappraisal ot nursing training.” said Dr. Turbott. He suggested exploring the possibility of a communitytype nurse, one capable of doing the day-to-day nursing of hospital patients, and of becoming a district nurse doing home-care nursing. Recruiting for this type of nursing could be open to any girl more titan 17. Training could be no longer than 18 months, he said.