41

R. JBBIFFAULT j

H.—3lb.

are cases of complicated labour. 1 can only suggest that the floor 1 have referred to should be disinfected one room at a time, if it is the fact that the rooms on that floor were all occupied. Cross-examination by Mrs. Nicol continued.] Jeyes fluid is a very good antiseptic. I have great faith in it. Ido not know the gardener who did the disinfecting. The disinfecting of the isolation ward by scrubbing the walls, floors, and ceilings with a strong solution of Jeyes fluid would be very satisfactory, though 1 should like, myself, to have it. fumigated with formaline. The disinfection by a gardener without any supervision does not sound right. In a properly constituted maternity home all traces of dirt on patients brought there from the slums should be cleaned away. Re-examined by Mr. Skelton.] I do not consider I am in a position to state as to what spot on Mrs. Chamberlain's body septicaemia was contracted. If the pain is correctly described as throbbing there would be a presumption that that was a seat of infection. One of the first signs of infection is inflammation. The risk of sepsis in general depends on the state of the home as to its cleanliness. To the Commissioner.] I cannot say that I know St. Helens. I know its history. It was Dr. Purchas's old residence, as a private home, at a guess, twenty-five or thirty years ago. I know the locality and the area of ground round it. Most emphatically, the site is not a suitable one for an institution of the sort. The building is not at all suitable for an institution of that sort. [Mrs. Martha Porch's statement produced by Mrs. Nicol, who states that it was made by Mrs. Porch at her house last evening; that the statement was made by Mrs. Porch without any aid in the nature of dictation or written draft, or in any other way; that her husband was present and assisted her as regards spelling some of the words; that the witnesses name —Mrs. Emily Porch—was written by a woman who was present of that name, and who is the mother-in-law of Mrs. Martha Porch. Mrs. Nicol says she saw Mrs. Emily Porch sign her name as a witness, "Mrs. Emily Porch." Mrs. Nicol says that Mrs. Martha Porch could not attend Court. Mr. Mays says he consents to the statement going in for what it is worth, subject to his right to comment on it.] Tracy Russell Inglis, recalled by Mr. Mays, saith. I saw Mrs. Allen during the time she was in the Hospital. Hers was quite a normal case. 1 believe I saw her infant. I refer to the second case. The infant needed medical attention while in the home. I saw it and treated it. So far as I saw, there was nothing that made it necessary that that child should have been retained in the home after the fifteenth day. We have retained the children where the mother has been sent to the Hospital and where the child has been very ill. As to Mrs. Allen herself, there was nothing out of the way in her confinement or afterwards. [No cross-examination by Mrs. Nicol.] To the Commissioner.] I could not swear that I saw the child on the day of the discharge, but I think I did. I inquired if it had diarrhoea. I had attended it for a mild attack of diarrhoea. It was quite fit to go out when it went. I would not absolutely swear that it had absolutely recovered from the diarrhoea. Martha Broadley (called by Mr. Mays), on her oath, saith. lam submatron at St. Helens Hospital, at Auckland. I am a general trained nurse and a registered midwife. T hold a Christchurch general hospital certificate. I also hold a certificate under the Midwives Act, obtained in Christchurch too. I was the senior nurse present at Mrs. Porch's confinement. She was admitted on the morning of the 28th August. I saw her during daylight that day—about 6 a.m. I saw her then all clay. We never leave a patient when she is in labour. Mrs. Porch was not in strong labour when she came in. The pains were few and far between. I saw Mrs. Porch right through from that time till she was delivered. She had the usual bath and the usual treatment after admission. She was given nourishment at intervals. She walked about and lay down, as patients generally do. Up to the time she was put in the labour-bed she made no complaints. She said several times, " Oh, how kind you are," and how very grateful she was to all the nurses for their kindness to her. Her eyes were shifty and unsteady. She was given hyoscine twice. On each occasion after that she slept well, on and off. It is quite untrue that she had no sleep during the whole sixty-five hours. I was present at the confinement when Dr. Goldstein was there. Dr. Goldstein was notified first thing in the morning of the 30th August that labour was progressing. T cannot tell at what stage of labour he arrived. I know it was in the morning before dinner time. He was there during the second stage, and delivered the child. The labour-bed was made up in the usual way with the usual coverings. The complaint is the very first thing T ever heard about Mrs. Porch getting a severe chill. Nine cases out of ten have a shivering fit following delivery. Mrs. Porch had this. Patient was removed after delivery to room No. 2, in which was another patient—Mrs. Williams. Later we had to remove Mrs. Porch to No. 6. She had become decidedly mental, and the patient in the room had noticed it. This patient had been a mental-hospital nurse. T recollect Mrs. Porch refusing to take food and refusing to feed her baby. She had had visitors, and some one of them had alarmed her about abscesses in the breast. After that Mrs. Porch would not look at her baby or have anything to do with it. The Matron said that these persons were not to see the patient any more. Patient remained in No. 6 till she was removed to the isolation ward. With the exception of her husband, visitors were kept away from her. - I was present at the caesarian operation that was performed in September. The results were splendid. There was no outbreaks of septicaemia. I was in charge of Rawene Hospital for some time. I say that everything that could be done was done for Mrs. Porch. Cross-examined by Mrs. Nicol.] Abscesses of the breast have not been a frequent occurrence at St. Helens. During labour the window is always shut.

6—H. 31b.