WOMEN AND NURSES

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 86, 6 January 1919, Page 9

WOMEN AND NURSES

During a wounded man's progress through hospitals arid cajiviilesccnt homes he Boon .comes. to realise that evoi.y woman in the uniform- of a nurse is not necessarily 'a iiiirse—that' is, ill the scllso of being a healer) ot even a comforter (writes James Cowan ill tho "Daily Mail"). .His .injuries, seem to. nwaken some,- protective, instinct, previously dormant, which tells , him that'certain persons will not benefit him byHheil' .ministrations, and'while under their .hands, life is restless and may even'suffer in u6m Training''does not Jtiako' evfery woman a' iiiirse, ally-mo'fe than it makes' every mau'a soldier.- ' ;

: One" woman' of- this type "I-■remember well. She was dainty alul the' model; indeed,-of the conventional 'idea-of the-perfect nurse. But -let herbe on night duty, arid many a patient suffered discomfort or pain till morning; rather than apply to her- for relief. ■ When she took- the-dressing, the trolly bearing the lnediciimeiits'and appliances! well deserved its nick-name'of. "the agony Wagon." Her not-unskilful hands- had no soothing power in them. » • ,1 s Jie gloir of sympathy was absent.; She was notcareless, -but she seemed to -think-that; the chief-merit of a nurse lay:.in .being able, to 1 probe calmly and endure the unpleas-;. aiitness ; of her patient's wounds,- wlule. at,-the .Binne time expecting them to remain equally indifferent. Remonstrance on--the part of-a patient was rar.o,-.but on. one occasion a tough Scot gave an involuntary squirm: and groan. "Why Jock," said the'-nurse, "whefe's all vour usunl-fortitude?". -..

"T'vo. got- plenty - of fortitude, nurse." replied l Jock,- "but .riivihinking-tofifty-tudo I wild bo needin' wi' you w'orking at me." . .

Hut ■ the truo-burn Rcntle .iiuirsc, . possessed of'the: .magical -healing touch— who can describe her.* All the words in! the world will not tell us how it. is she is. able to quieten the restless, .fevered.: patient by hoi'.mere approach.. '.He likes her to. touch him. He iviU.'lo .anything,, she tells him; like an obedient child, and, hoping;.to .please, her, will, painfully at; tempt many things ho cannot.do.". . Her touch. during the ordeal, of dressy ingf seems to" possess an anaesthetic quality, which infuses a kind-of pleasure, into .tho pain—if those who-have hot'beeh patients can ,understand such' tv tiling.' She knows .the-.instant of each excruciating twinge,and .in some iiiexplainablq' way'the patient ..feels it dplicioiisly, soothed almost as so,on as suffered.' She knows just when, where, and how to lilace her gentlp, firm hand., ] ' "That's giving you ii lot.of pain," said ono sucli woinan to a man who was,havr.. ing little jagged pieces of metal- picked out of his face; as-6he: placed a supporting hand against his head. ;■ ■ . .. "Keep your hand there,'nurse, and I'll let you' pick tin tacks out of-me all day," patien{;. It was the heal-:. ,ing touch;

. The annual public examinations .of the' Universitj' of Adelaide afford a strikingindex of the extent to which the German: language has fallen into disfavour among' South Australian students since the 'war (says the "South Australian EegisterV).' In 1913 the number of candidates who sat for German in the. junior, senior,-higher/' and*'commercial 'examinations was 264/ and at the same period there; wero'ss3 for French.,'" l/his year only 68 students •took German as a 'subject, and the nunv ber of those' examined in., French -waj> GSI. - The amount of attention paid to' tho language' of Britain's noble ally,- compared ' with -that given "to the - rival tongue, lias changed in proportion: from about two to- one five 'years ago" to 10 to one at the present time. .j : - : ■ ■ • ■ DANGEROUS INHALANTS. Some people, think that any preventive for Influenza, "which is' not irritant' and unpleasant cannot' be effective..'They \v:ant. something '.'strong" they Say.'This" idea has led , many to use-'Formalin and other drastic things •" Which cause''the, membrane., of the riose " and\'throat : to 1 ' smart'.' Such treatment' .is distinctly iniurious—and unnecessary'.' NAZOL,; well known in thousands of 'homes for marty years, has very'powerful antiseptic and. germicidal properties—yet is'-qiiito -pleasant in use. ■ A few drops on your- hand- 1 kerchief make a snfe: and sure Inlmlant, and should be used r constantly , during ■this..epidemic. ~.Sold! ,e Yevywhere, Adv't. ; .■ '. ;■