THE PLUNKET SOCIETY.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21146, 2 October 1930, Page 8

THE PLUNKET SOCIETY.

The Plunket Society, as it is commonly known, though it has a more impressive title,' deserves well of the public, it deserves particularly well of the Dunedin public. For to Dunedin belongs the honour of being its birthplace, the headquarters of its Central Council, and the seat of the KaritaneHarns Hospital, now famous as the Dominion training centre for Plunket nurses. Albeit these facts should be known to everybody there is point in their restatement in view of the circumstance that the Plunket Society makes its annual public street appeal to-morrow for funds to enable it efficiently to carry on its work. It may be a loose assumption on the part of some people that because the Society receives State assistance it has little need of this other kind of support. Any such assumption is, of

course, entirely erroneous. The carrying on of the Society’s work, which, in the course of twentyrthree years, has grown to very important dimensions, entails a heavy annual expenditure, and without the voluntary contributions, which in relation to the State contribution stand in the ratio of £50,000 to £23,000, it simply could not function. It was a shock to the Society to learn, earlier in the present year, of the Government’s intention of reducing its subsidy very considerably on the score of the necessity for economy. Fortunately the strong representations made on the subject had the effect of convincing the Government of the expediency of foregoing retrenchment in respect of a national work of such importance, and the support, accorded the Society in* this matter by members of Parliament was encouraging as evidence of public appreciation of the value of its labours. To-day the Plunket Society is firmly established as a far-reaching influence in the life of the whole community. Approximately 65 per cent, of the children born in the Dominion come directly under the care of the Plunket nurses. The measure in which one of the primary objects for which the Society was founded has been promoted is indicated in the fact that whereas, when the work commenced in Dunedin .in 1907,. bottle-feeding was almost universal, the percentage of, babies,. nurtured in the natural way has for the last five years exceeded 80 per cent. Since the Society started operations the total death-rate of infants in their, first twelve months has been reduced to less than half, and the death rate of infants in the period from one month to twelve has been •reduced to less than a quarter of what it was. And the limit of results of such a kind has by no means been reached. The statistics go on showing an improvement from year to year, which is highly gratifying, and is really a magnificent testimony to the value of the Plunket Society’s work. It reflects, of course,- the far-reaching educational influence of the Society’s operations. The ramifications of these are surprisingly extensive to-day, and tor the effort they represent the return m the shape of national benefit is of so splendid a kind that there is surely no organisation which deserves better of the State, and those who comprise it. the community owes no small debt to the organisation which, existing, of coarse, upon a voluntary basis, has through the public spirit of its leaders been able to achieve'so much, and it is tor the. public to recognise the fact very cheerfully on occasions when the Society comes before it with an appeal for the assistance which it needs for the carrying bn of its labours. The success of such appeals should be especially a ,matter of concern to those receiving direct benefit from 'the Society’s ministrations.