"PARENTCRAFT"

Evening Post, Volume CXV, Issue 13, 17 January 1933, Page 11

"PARENTCRAFT"

BABY WEEK" IN LONDON

There appears to be some real commonsense exercised in the arrangements made for "Baby Week" in London, according to a recent account. One startling innovation made is, that in preparation for parenthood, fathers are to be instructed as well as mothers. It is mentioned specially that there is much that fathers do not know about the necessary care of expectant mothers, and of the part they could (and should) take in the welfare of the expected Wiild. It was stated that each year there is still a loss of 3000 mothers by death, and nloro than half these deaths arise from preventable causes. The British Government thinks that it really means to take this serious loss in hand from some new" standpoints, and more general knowledge and instruction is to be one of the means of improving matters. Not only parents are going to be told something of the methods of care necessary for tho mothers, but school teachers and children arc to have modified lectures given. Tho Ministry of Health gives assurancp that it will not, for any reason, retreat from its aim and purpose of finding a solution of .the problem of dangers to women on account of maternal mortality. The work of the "Baby "Week" Council (which has worked on for several years) has been adopted by tho Government as its own, and great hopes are entertained that something bettor' will eventuate for the women of tho nation. Tho report states: "Tho time is thoroughly ripe for emphasising that the parents themselves are responsible for the welfare of their children." Where ignorance existed, and women were maltreated in a number of ways, insufficiently fed and overworked, there must be light brought on the subject, and it ia urged that parentcraft instruction should begin early. It is suggested and. intended to bring into the schools instruction in father and mothercraft, and it is mentioned that whenever it has been asked before that the children should receive some

recognised instruction in these most important matters, the reply had been that there was no time as the young ones were being prepared for matriculation or some other examination, the subjects of which were not likely to be of nea:-ly the same civic value for them in tho future as a decent knowledge of themselves and of the right way to live, f