BABIES.

Press, Volume LVI, Issue 16857, 10 June 1920, Page 7

BABIES.

ADDRESS BY DR. TRUBY KING. "Although, the Christchurcli branch, of the Plunket Society was the second to be inaugurated in New Zealand, it was started in the same year as the t original Ihxnodin branch,'' said Dr. Trilby King, C.M.G., when oompli-1 menting the Society upon its initiative j at its annual meeting yesterday. Dr. j King especially referred to the found a-1 tiou of the Baby Hospital at Cashmere; Hills, stating that an institution of this, kind was a very difficult undertaking. | It was a regrettable fact that infant; hospitals had in the past been, almost; without exception, failures, in that in- j fantile mortality liad been higher in J hospitals than in the homes of the peo-1 pie. But New Zealand had established itself in a very prominent plnco in_ tho world by reason of the suee?ss of its ; infant hospitals, and tho fact that outj of the fifty-six babies admitted to tho Christchurcli Baby Hospital during tho : past year, onlv one had died, the iniant, m question being in a practically iuori-, bund state at the time of its admission, : hnd established the fact that tho hos-1 pital was a success. Everything at iho Baby Hospital was conceived and s<!-| ministered in an admirable manner. ; There was no question whatever as to | the benefits that accrued to the com-; munity from having a, hospital of tins kind so near to tho city. Doctors and nurseS could at best be only casual or temporary visitors in tho homos of their ; patients, whereas the mother was on! duty the whole twenty-four hours, and must have a knowledge of all those little things which make for the sue-. ccss of the.child; hence the value of iho j Baby Hospital and of the Plunket j nurses who gave instruction to mothers! in those matters which, although they i seemed small in themselves, yet mado • for the ultimate happiness and physical, well-being of both mother and child. j Continuing, I)r. King said that tho j welfare of babies seemed the last! thing to have been taken in hand by' the medical profession. In the Vie- j toriau era a slipshod manner of re-aring | children hnd been drifted into. Gener- > ally speaking, the methods then in v.oguo were wrong. The feeding of; babies was naturally the most. important j thing in connexion with their welfare, j In the sixties and seventies it was tho! custom to give babies nourishment every ! two hours, but investigations made in ' Germany some fifteen or twenty years; ago had established the fact that it was' better to feed infants onco in every : four hours, and this was later confirmed \ by American authorities, who insisted that babies should not be fed more frequently than every four hours, and not more than five times a day. Strangely , enough, this was resisted in the United Kingdom, and practically all tho British text-books set forth the benefits of two-hourly feedings. The speaker had been present at the congress called by Sir Georgo Newman to advise tho British Government in regard to certain matters, and at that congress the necessity of disseminating universally tho supreme importance of breast feeding, and of not feeding more than five times in twenty-four hours, was considerably stressed. Considered from the mother's point alone, such would mean the reducing of hec work in the home, but the fact was established that it was beneficial to the bab.y as well. "What obtained in regard to this, the rnost important matter, is also applicable to other data in the home," declared the sneaker. "If unanimity could be arrived at in regard to tho treatment of the baby it would be better _ for the community as a whole. While I was in London, Professor Kenwood collected thirty pamphlets issued by tho health authorities in the different areas about London, and all giving different advice to mothers. What is required for tho improvement of the health of women and children is the dissemination of uniform advice, nob alono through the cities, but through the oountry as well. We have arrived at a fairly uniform system in New Zealand, which is for tho benefit of all concerned I was much impressed by the enormous importance attached to these matters throughout the United States, but to my mind too much attention is being paid to enlightening the submerged tenth, and too little to those who aro intelligent. It is a matter of higher education, and we should offer every incentive to women to utilise that knowledge which is to the advantage of tho "health of the community." Successful maternity was the most important thing for the community, the speaker said, in conclusion. If every woman were properly reared and reasonably trained, the infantile death-rate would be half its present figure. The Plunket Society did not exist to reduce the death-rate, but to establish that every child bora should be given a chance to reach a high stato of physical health. A high state of physical health entailed that the mental and moral health would also be finer. The Plunket Society was not his work.. He had certainly pointed out that greater care should be taken of the country's children, but the success of the Society depended on tho women of the country, and notably the committees-with their devoted women, who were the heart and soul of the Plunket "Society. On the motion of Dr. G. M. L. Lester, a hearty vote of thanks was accorded Dr. King for his address.