THE DENTAL NURSES

Evening Star, Issue 17639, 19 April 1921, Page 8

THE DENTAL NURSES

THIRTY-FIVE IN TRAINING. VISIT BY THE MINISTER. Tho scheme under which dental nurses are to bo trained to give tbo necessary attention to tbo tootb of school children has been definitely launched, (says tho Wellington ‘Post’), and tho training of the first batch of thirty-fivo women has been commenced. Part of tho ground floor of the Baso Records building, in Whitmore street, has been allocated for the use of tho State School Dental Service, while Dr Truby King (Director of Child Welfare) and other Governmenfc officers who h&vo to deni with matters affecting tho children of the country will be given accommodation close by, so that they may work in with one another with more ease. .... When applications were invited from these who wished to enter tho State Dental Service 120 women applies. Tho most promising of this number have been and < the preliminary training was started this month under Mr Dunn. The early part of , tho training is regarded as particularly im- 1 portant, and the nurses will be given a] thorough foundation on which to build their future success. Chemistry and anatomy as applied to dentistry are at present occupying tho attention of tho class, and not a little part of the early training will bo for ; the purpose of securing manual dexterity. Incidentally, on tho assumption that prevention is belter than cure, each nurse will he made a propagandist for dental hygiene. ' The room to bo used as the main clinic appears excellently adapted for its purpose, i It is brightly lighted, sunny, and well ventilated, and provides ample accommodation, i At present it is not fitted up, but all tho material is ready for use when required. Practically everything needed is being secured from tho Defence Department, which still has tbo chairs, instruments, etc., used by tho Dental Corps during the war. The service, therefore, will not bo an expensive one a very important matter in these clays of financial stringency. A brief visit to the promises was made by I the Minister of Education (the Hon. C. J. j Parr), the father of tho scheme, yesterday. Mr Parr inspected the work already done, and then went into the class room and addressed tho probationers. Ho said those before him were starting on one of the most important work- ever undertaken in Now Zealand. Tho Dominion was the pioneer as far as the setting up of a State Dental Service for the schools was concerned, and on the women in training rested a great responsibility. Tho scheme had not been un-' dertaken hurriedly or without taking counsel with those qualified to give an opinion, and he trusted that the work of the nurses in the future would bo such as to justify the decision of tho Minister to adopt it. But of far more importance than the justification of the Minister was tho benefit which the i nurses after their training, would bo able 1 to give to the children of tho country. It had been shown that four out of every five; children in New Zealand required dental treatment, and the nurses would bo privileged to take part in tho task of eradiating this great evil. It would bo a big task, but ho looked forward to the time when the service would have 200 trained nurses at work. There was hard work before them, but he was confident R would bo done, and done well.