TRAINED NURSES' ASSOCIATION.

Otago Witness, Issue 3263, 27 September 1916, Page 45

TRAINED NURSES' ASSOCIATION.

MEMORIAL TO FALLEN NURSES. At the invitation of the Trained -Nurses' Association, a gathering of considerable size was held in the Savoy lounge room last evening lor the dual purpose of extending a welcome to Dr and Mrs Marshall Macdonald on their return from service in France and of hearing outlined by Dr Lindo Ferguson a' scheme lor providing some memorial in honour of those nurses who have devoted themselves—and in some cases have given their lives—to the service of humanity and of their country. The attractive room had been nicely decorated for the occasion with kowhai and wattle, and the more serious part of the business was relieved by a number of musical items and by the participation in light refreshments. The duty of welcoming Dr and Mrs Macdonald was placed in the hands of Dr Fitchett, who stated that the members of the Nurses' Association were extremely pleased to meet them on their return from the- seijt of war. For many years Dr Macdonald had acted as president of that association, and he had served it well as guide, philosopher, and friend, even paying the nurses the compliment of selecting Ins wife from among their number. The speaker had been asked to convey to their gnosis an expression of appreciation of the enterprise and self-sacrifice they had shown in going forward in the service of the Empire, and also to' say how delighted the nurses were to see them back home again. —(Applause.)^ Dr Macdonald, speaking on behalf of his wife and himself, said that they were very much touched to receive such a warm welcome from (lie association. Probably the first thing they would be interested in was to know what the people at Homo thought of the nurses who had been sent from here. Although he had not had an opportunity of actually working with them, he had heard on all sides the highest praise of what they had done in Egypt and on the hospital ships on which they were placed. Ho had spoken to a good many wounded soldiers, and, although patients were not perhaps the best judges, they spoke very highly indeed of the New Zealand, Australian, and Canadian, nurses, stating "that these were the best muses engaged in the work there. That was an honest expression of opinion, and from what he had seen of the other nursas ho thought it wa.B a perfectly fair indgment. Speaking of the Walton-on-Thames Hospital, which he had visited, Dr Macdonald said it was an excellent institution, and was doing splendid work—especially since it had reverted to military control. Ho had also seen something of the New Zealand War Contingent Association, which had accommodation for over 200 soldiers on leave or those who were convalescent, and which looked after them exceedingly well at a very moderate price. Whenever a New Zealander was admitted to a hospital in England he was visited by people from this country, and that was also an excellent idea. In Edinburgh there was 'an association run by New Zealand ladies which was attending to the sick and wounded. He thought they could look on the work of our nurses and of these various associations with the greatest satisfaction and pleasure. The speaker then proceeded to give some interesting information regarding the hospital system in France. The nurses in that country, ho said, were neither so well educated nor so highly" trained as were the English nurses. _ The real nursing, however, was done by Sisters of Mercy, who had a very high sense of duty and devotion to their patients, and were not at all of the austere type that might be imagined. The work that these sisters were doing could be regarded with the greatest satisfaction. Many voluntary workers were also lending much valuable assistance, and the question would arise after the war whether many of those women who were receiving a great deal of skilled training would be willing to re-enter private life. It would mean that they would get a better class of probationer in France after the war, and in New Zealand they should also insist upon keeping up the standard of probationers, making every endeavour to get girls with a good education and those who were fitted for the duties that would be required of them. From what he had seen of the French doctors and surgeons he gathered that they had learned a great Vleal from the war, and a great advance had been made in the way of mechanical appliances, splints, etc. The French medical men were very highly skilled, and the speaker had formed a high opinion of their efficiency, and especially of their clinical skill. They were doing a great deal of work, and, he was afraid, would be for some time to come. Dr Macdonald concluded by thanking- Dr Fitchett for the kind welcome he had conveyed to thorn by suggesting that the time had come when the nurses should select a president from among their own number.—(Loud applause.) The duty of explaining the second purpose of the meeting was placed in the capable hands of Dr Ferguson, who stated that the president of the association had asked him to say that the occasion of welcoming back a member of the association who had been to the front was an appropriate time to have the fact recalled that some of their members who had undertaken war service had given their lives in the cause ftiey were serving, and that the nurses in Dunedin felt very strongly that some momoiial should bo established in their honour. He felt that such a memorial was called for. but tho Nurses' Association had not considered, the form that was most advisable for it to take and. he could, therefore, only put forward an expression of his own .personal views on the subject. Ho had come to the conclusion that those nurses who had gone forward would have best liked their memorial to take the form of somo assistance to their sisters here, who. in carrying out their daily duties wore facing, perhaps, as much risk as that faced by those who went to the front. The idea of establishing a pension scheme for nurses as a class was too ambitious for individuals to undertake. It was a matter that would have to he undertaken by the Government and the different boards employing nurses on a large scale, and he personally felt that the idea of a memorial should be associated with a scheme of pure benevolence, and that tho best form it could take would bo the creation of a fund for granting annuities or assistance to those nurses who were unable to support themselves through old ago. or who, through ill health, had broken down bv the way.

The speaker suggested various methods of raising funds for fhe purpose, and strongly urged the creating of a capital sum which would permanently provide an income for the beneficiaries "under the fund. The speaker concluded by suggesting tho formation of a small committee, with, power to add to its number. He added that the work of this committee would be to formulate the details of the scheme, and put. it in working order. Dr Ferguson's remarks were endorsed by the hearty acclamation of all present. His proposals were subsequently put to the meeting in the form of a resolution, which was carried unanimously, and the nucleus of the proposed committee was thereupon formed Dr Ferguson further pointed out that in a scheme of tho kind he had outlined unanimity throughout New Zealand was essential, and lie thought that Nurse Thomson (president of the association} should write to Miss M'Lean (Deputy Inspectorgeneral of Hospitals. Wellington), informing her that the nurses of Dunedin were strongly in favour of a benevolent scheme. This course was agreed to.