STATUS OF NURSES

Taranaki Daily News, 9 June 1930, Page 11

STATUS OF NURSES

CONDITIONS OF TRAINING. WORK IN PRIVATE HOSPITALS. A deputation representing the .New Zealand Trained Nurses’ Association waited on the Minister of Health, the Hon. A. J. Stall worthy, at Wellington, and asked that the Bill to amend the Nurses’ Registration Act, introduced in Parliament last session, but not proceeded with, be not again introduced in the coming session. Dr. J. S. Elliott introduced the deputation, which he said represented practically the whole of the nursing profession of the Dominion. The Bill as introduced last session would, in the opinion of the association, make radical changes in the registration of nurses. The nurses of New Zealand were the first in the. British Empire, indeed, he thought, in the world, to get State registration. The nurses of New Zealand had had a long and public-spirited struggle to raise the status of their profession to its present level, and they would be deeply distressed if anything were done which would prejudice the standard of the service. At present, he continued, the nursing profession in New Zealand enjoyed, reciprocity with Great Britain. The nurses had been informed that if the amending Bill f last session became law, the existing reciprocity would be withdrawn. They had a right to ask that that reciprocity be maintained. The medical profession was heart and soul with the nurses .on the point that nothing should be done- which would lower the status and training of the profession or the standard of examination. Miss I. C. Inglis, general secretary ,of the association, said that an innovation such as the training of nurses in private hospitals would be detrimental to the status of the profession. r A questionnaire had been submitted to the trained nurses: Some 500 in number had replied opposing the provisions in the Bill. The Minister said that the question of the extension of the training institutions of nurses was first brought under his notice by a number of members of the medical profession in Auckland. Since then similar representations had been made in other parts of the Dominion. It had been urged that there was no intention to lower the status of the profession or the standard of training. At present there were some small general hospitals which were accepted as training schools, and these institutions were in respect to numbers of beds and scope of training, below the standard of half a dozen of the largest private hospitals. What was asked was that these private hospitals, if they complied with all the requirements of the Nurses’ and Midwives’ Registration Board, should be competent to be accepted on their merits as approved training schools. He would not agree to any change, which would mean the withdrawal of reciprocity with Great Britain, nor to a change which would mean the lowering of the status and standard of the nursing .profession or of- the State examination, . . ,/; > The Minister added that the Bill had not yet been considered byCabinet, so., he was not in a position .to say whether or not any Bill would be introduced in the Coining session. He promised if it was intended to bring down such a measure, even in an amended form, that a copy of the Bill would be submitted to the Trained Nurses’ Association for their, consideration. . '