NURSES’ TRAINING SCHOOLS

Taranaki Daily News, 12 September 1930, Page 9

NURSES’ TRAINING SCHOOLS

BILL PROPOSES EXTENSIONS. * DISCUSSION IN PARLIAMENT. By Telegraph.—Press Association. * Wellington, Last Night. Moving the committal of the Nurses and Midwives Registration Amendment Bill in tiie House of Representatives today the Hqu. A. J. Stallworthy said at present the only recognised training Schools for nurses in New Zealand were the public hospitals under the control of hospital boards. If there were a private hospital twice the’ size of a public institution, doing the same woik and run on the same lines, it could not be recognised as a training school. The Bill was designed to enable such, hospitals to be treated on thejr merits in regard to training of nurses. There was no ground to fear that the registration board would not function as satisfactorily as in the past, because ample precautions would be taken to ensure that there wquld be compliance with eyery requirement of the board before the board’s approval would be given to any voluntary or private institution as a training school. The Minister said if he had any misgivings bn the ground that the change jn practice would in any way endanger reciprocal arrangements with the Nuising Council of England and Wales he would drop the Bill. These arrangements were based on the recognised standing of nurses in New Zealand and there was no reason to doubt that the board would continue t Q maintain the same standa'J of training. The Bill provided that before any private hospital could ( be approved as a training school there would have to be at least 40 beds open to the public that would be free of charge or at an inadequate charge, Any hospital conforming with such conditions would be sure to have at least 100 bpcls in all and there would consequently be full scope for the training of purses. Ho knew of no other measure that would assist the nurses of New Zealand to such an extent as this Bill. It need not be feared that the registration board would license any hospital tliat did not provide for ample training in dealing with infectious disease cases. Mr. J. A. Young said he thought the only objections to the Bill qould be met if amendments were accepted while it was being considered in committee. He proposed to move two amendments in committee and he believed they woulu. eliminate any features of the .Bill that could bo regarded as unsatisfactory. There was a danger as the Bill stood, at present that the nursing profession would be flooded and unemployment would follow. For that reason the Nurses’ Association desired that .only wards containing public beds in private hospitals should be recognised as training schools. He also urged that provision should be inserted in the Bill that the board should not recognise any private hospital as a training school unless and until it had by reasonable inquiries satisfied itself that reciprocal arrangements with the Nursing Council of England and Wales would not be prejudiced. He considered there should be a definite safeguard on that point. Mr. C. H. Clinkard said he felt every provision had been made in the Bill to ensure that New Zealand’s high standard of training would be maintained. He was also satisfied there were, adequate safeguards with respect to reciprocity. Mr. W. D. Lysnar said he did not think there was any serious dissatisfaction among- the nurses or among the publie with the present system of training. The Minister should leave well alone. Nothing should be done that might result in lowering the standard of training or in creating unemployment among nurses. He hoped the Bill would not be passed. It would of necessity give an advantage to one private hospital as against another and he could not see why the Minister should go on with the measure at the present stage of the country’s development when there were very few private hospitals sufficiently large to fulfil the requirements of recognition as training schools. Mr. W. E. Parry said he felt convinced there was no danger of the standard of training being lowered or of the reciprocity arrangements being prejudiced in any way. Amendments to the Bill had been drawn after careful consideration of all the evidence given by experts before the Public Health Committee, and he was satisfied the community would not suffer, Mr. W. D. Stewart said the cardinal weakness of the Bill seemed to be ><iat it gambled with the rights of nurses, Notwithstanding the safeguards tfie committee considered it had inserted there was no guarantee that the Nursing Council of England and Wales would approve of the standard of training set by the board, and there could be no such guarantee until such standard hod been submitted to and approved by the council in England. Ke considered the approval of this body should be obtained before there was any alteration in New Zealand’s conditions with respect to training. The debate was interrupted by the rising of the house at 10.30 p.m.