Some Facts About the Journal of the A.T.N.A.

Kai Tiaki : the journal of the nurses of New Zealand, Volume I, Issue 1, 1 January 1908, Page 22

Some Facts About the Journal of the A.T.N.A.

(by "one who writes for it.")

We are so used to stories full of thrilling incidents that a tale of uniform success such as is supplied by the life's history of the journal of the A.T.N.A. seems to be unworthy of the trouble of printing. Still the fiat of Miss McLean has gone forth that it is to be written, so written it must be. As I believe her purpose is to stimulate New Zealand nurses to enter upon a similar venture, perhaps the very ease of establishment which makes the story of our journal so uninteresting may serve thet end better than if I bad to tell of many disappointments and difficulties. The journal of the A.T.N.A. was the natural consequence of the formation of the Association, for it was obviously impossible to keep some hundreds of nurses interested m an Association of this kind without some regular means of inter-communication between them. The first formal suggestion, however, came from Miss Gould, so long the matron of the Sydney Hospital, and one of the original members of the Council of the A.T.N.A. To us m Sydney who know the extent to which Miss Gould has been identified with all that has helped to advance the

interests and education of nurses m New South Wales it seems only natural that the ide? should originate with her. She brought the matter before the Council m November of 1902 ; as a formal motion, and it met with immediate approval. A sub-committee was appointed to discuss and report upon the question, and especially to deal with the financial side. At the Council meeting held m January of 1903 this sub-committee submitted their report m which they unanimously recc mmended that a journal should be published by the Association, and that it should, zt least at first, be issued quarterly. They submitted estimates of the probable cost and showed that there was reason to believe that the funds of the society could meet the necessary expenditure without there being ?ny need to charge members for their copies. The next step was the finding of a printer and this, wit a the rest of the business arrangements, was left m the hands of Dr. Sinclair Gillies, a New Zea lander by the way, who was appointed the first editor-in-chief. It may perhaps be of interest to know that the form and the colrur of the cover of the journal

were suggestions of Dr. Gillies, and that they were modelled upon the St. Bartholomew's Hospital league Journal, as be is what is known among doctors as a " Barts " man. The tender of Messrs. W. E. Smith was selected as the most suitable, and their firm have acted as the printers of the Association ever since. With our energetic editorial staff no time was lost, but it was found to be quite impossible to get the first copy out in February as was hoped at first, and the journal first saw light towards the end of March, only two days before its admirable contemporary in Victoria, Una, first appeared. In the production of the first number the Editorial Committee received valuable assistance and advice from the Piesident, Dr. Norton Manning, who devoted a great deal of his time during the last years of bis life to the Association, and was keenly arxious to see the journal established. Unfortunately his guiding hand was only too soon withdrawn and the second number had to announce his death, and contained an appreciative notice of his work in connection with the Association. The later history of the journal is one of uniform progress. In October, 1903, Dr. Gillies found the call upon his time too heavy and resigned from his position. Dr. Mary

Booth was appointed m his place, and was m 1904 succeeded by Dr. Blackburn who has continued to occupy the editorial chair ever since. The responsibilities of editorship be ye not, however, rested upon one pair of shoulders at any time, and valuable assistance has always been given by two assistant-editors, one of whom has always been Miss Gould and the other, at first, Miss McGahey ond later, Mrs. Davidson. At the annual meeting m July, 1905, it was pointed out that the needs of the Association were not fully served by a quarterly journal, and it was decided to publish monthly m future. The first copy of the monthly edition appeared m September of that year, and with it a slight change m the form was made, but the original cover was retained. The circulation is at the present time more than 2500. The net cost to the members is rother high, as it averages ebout 3s per head, but this is partly due to the fact that the Council decided when the journal became a monthly one to vote a small salary to the editor and a special allowance to tbe secretary of the Association, for the time she bad to devote to the extra work entailed. Both these amounts are of course included m estimating the cost of productior.