THE PLUNKET SOCIETY.

King Country Chronicle, Volume XVIII, Issue 1858, 6 September 1923, Page 5

THE PLUNKET SOCIETY.

RECEPTION TO NURSE RAWLINGS THE WORK TO BE DONE. ■ That the work of the willing band of earnest and enthusiastic workers organised for the establishment of a branch of the Plunket Society is not in vain was amply shown by the number of ladies who attended the reception to Nurse Rawlings on Tuesday afternoon in the Municipal Hall. The work in organising the local branch of the society has not been a light task, and the fact that there was an attendance of over 60 mothers on Tuesday afternoon to hear the aims and objects of the society must be extremely gratifying to the committee, which has worked in such an unselfish manner to make the branch in Te Kuiti an established fact.

Mr J. W. Broadfoot, Deputy-Mayor, addressed the gathering, and stated that the good work of the society was well known to all present, and it was a matter of congratulation that after some very hard work on the part of the enthusiasts who had brought about the formation of a branch for the town and district, it had been at last firmly established. The initial work had fallen on the shoulders of a few enthusiastic workers, and it now remained for all who needed the assistance of the society to make use of the information which was now at their disposal. It was the duty of all to endeavour to secure new members for the society and help it along in every possible way. The Plunket Society was a New Zealand institution, and branches had been formed in many other parts of the world, its work being a noble one. If we had a healthy and virile young generation, then we had good men and women growing up to administer and carry on the work of the country in years to come. Mr Broadfoot called upon all those present to help the society in "every possible way, and formally introduced Nurse Rawlings to those present. Nurse Rawlings expressed her gratitude to those responsible for the reception, more especially as it gave her an opportunity of meeting the mothers whom she hoped to meet again in the course of her duties. There were a few who perhaps did not know what the functions of the Plunket Society were or what infant mortality meant. Infant welfare meant lowering the mortality among the little ones, and at the same time increasing the standard of fitness of the survivors. The Government had medical inspection of schools, and provided proper ventilation, sanitation, and saw that ample fresh air was allowed pupils, while the Factory Act looked after the workers. These precautions were rendered futile to a large extent, however, unless the young people were given a good start in early life, and this was the object of the Plunket Society. There were three good reasons why infant welfare should be established, viz:—(1) It was estimated that 40 per cent of adults were below normal standard; (2) the dentition and normal development of school children was bad; and (3) the decay of teeth in young children gave them a bad start in life. The essentials for the preservation of health were fresh air, sunshine, clealiness, pure food, proper exercise, wholesome recreation, and congenial company. The notification of births from the Registrar of Births enabled the Plunket Nurses to get in touch with a large and increasing number of mothers after child-birth, and had very beneficial results. The figures of infant mortality per 1000 for the two years ending 1922 were as follows:—Deaths under one year, 1921, 47 per cent; 1922, 41.3 per cent; under one month, 1921, 30 per cent; 1922, 27 per cent; after one month and under one year, 1921, 17 per cent; 1922, 14.6 per cent. The figures, stated Nurse Rawlings, must be considered very satisfactory, and extremely gratifying to all those engaged in infant welfare work. It is not claimed that the whole of the credit is due to the society, but it must be conceded that it is a very large contributing factor. The reduction of infant mortality is not the greatest aim of the organisation, for the highest standard of health for the survivors is the more important objective. Nurse Rawlings concluded a very interesting address by pointing out the great advantage of natural feeding for the baby compared to artificial feeding, and gave a brief summary of the procedure carried out by those who Wished to take advantage of the work of the society.

A dainty afternoon tea was dis-" pensed by the committee of the local branch, and if the meeting is any criterion it can be safely assumed that the Plunket Society is now firmly established in the town.