MOTHERCRAFT TRAINING

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22792, 28 July 1937, Page 6

MOTHERCRAFT TRAINING

ENGLISH SOCIETY'S WORK MONEY FROM THE DOMINION [from our. own correspondent] LONDON, July 10 "Thanks to tho great generosity of tho Karitase Society of New Zealand in making us a present of £IOOO from their proiits wo have been able to build cubicles where tho children can bo isolated for a few days after their arrival," said Lady Gahvav, chairman of tho' executive of the Motliercraft Training Society, at the annual meeting at Cromwell House, Higligato Hill, on July 8. New Zealanders present included /Mr. Justice Blair, Lady Myers, and Miss Pattriek, lato nursing director to the society in New Zealand. Miss Merle Oberon, the film actress, was the' guest of honour. Lady Galway said that tho movement was growing, and altogether with affiliated societies, attendances had numbered -11,000. Anything that was dono at Cromwell House could bo carried out in the average home under averago circumstances. Tho teaching was bKscd on common sense.

The honorary medical director, Dr. R. C. Jewesbury, also mentioned the marked progress of the society, lie re ferred to the expansion which had become necessary since 1925, and said that tho new cubicles —known as the Karitane Nurseries —would be a further safeguard for tho health of the babies. It was realised to-day that it was a mistako to have a largo number of children together in one ward, because of tho rapidity with which infection spread. Weakly children were particularly liab'e to infection and it was the moro nev-essary that they should be isolated

Total attendances at the seven branch centres during the year had been 41,132, an increase of 4000. It was a /good criticism of the work done at the centre to know the number of mothers who naturally fed their babies. Last year it was 70 per cent at all branches. Cromwell House had been kept going at full capacity. The school of nurses was n I ways full, and there wero many on the waiting list. Dr. Jewesbury also had a word to Bay on,nutrition. The difficulty was to convey the neccssarv knowledge of nutrition to the people who really required'it, and the person who required it more than anyone else was the mother, both during the ante-natal period and afterward. It was the work of the Mothercraft Training Society and kindred societies to toll the mother in simple form what she ought to eat. Good nutrition meant good health. Malnutrition meant backward children, and the problem then became Dot preventive, but curative, which .was almost an admission of failure.