H—3l

At times it has been said that the St. Helens Hospitals might have carried more of this increase, but the annual returns show: — 1947 St. Helens Hospital, Auckland .. .. 646 1,026 St. Helens Hospital, Wellington .. .. 549 706 St. Helens Hospital, Christchurch .. .. 313 409 St. Helens Hospital, Invercargill .. .. 204 330 The number of midwives was increased by affiliating Alexandra Home to St. Helens Hospital, Wellington, half-way through the year, and this is being extended.

Public Health Nursing With the introduction of a visiting-nurse benefit through the Hospital Board system there has been a very rapid expansion of the Hospital Board district nursing scheme. Originally it was estimated that 1 nurse would be required for 4,000 of population, but it would appear as though 1 nurse to 6,000 will be sufficient, although the demands vary according to the conditions. For instance, in two adjacent districts where the type of hospital case varies because of scarcity of chronic beds the demand is just double ; also, a small country town of 7,000 people which has an adequate hospital has found it can hardly keep a District Nurse employed. This is largely because there are so few people in homes who can care for a bed-ridden patient between the visits of a nurse. Now that the number of doctors has increased in the community it is most important that nurses should only pay an initial visit without the patient seeing a doctor and that every patient should be under medical care where at all possible. The following is a summary of work of 80 Hospital Board District Nurses for the period Ist January, 1947, to 31st March, 1947 : Number of nurses (including 1 part-time only) .. .. 80 Total new cases referred from — Hospitals .. .. .. .. .. 591 Private practitioners .. .. .. .. 1,325 Patients own home .. .. .. .. 3,488 Total number of cases seen at — Nurses' centres .. .. ... .. .. 2,365 Patients own home .. .. .. .. 9,615 Total number of visits at — Nurses' centres .. .. .. .. .. 2,376 Patients own homes .. .. .. .. 33,208

26

— 1941. 1942. 1943. 1944. 1945. 1946. Number of nurses qualifying as maternity 228 261 293 316 335 410 nurses Number of eighteen months' trainees 53 76 59 61 62 56 qualifying as maternity nurses Number of midwives qualifying 57 66 51 55 61 76