DIRECTOR OF NURSING

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Volume 81, Issue 28, 27 October 1937, Page 12

DIRECTOR OF NURSING

-PresB AsBociation.)

Return from Abroad MRS. LAMBIE'S IMPRESSIONS

(By Telegraph-

! Reference to the ahortage of trained nursei was made by Miss M. I. Lambie, director of the nursiug division of the the Health Department, who returned to the Dominion thia week after a visit abroad, where she travelled under a Rockefeller scholarship. "Practically all cver the world at the present time there is a shortage of recently-qualified nurses waiting to fill positions as staff nurses in public or private hospitals,55 Miss Lambie said. Giving some of the reasons for this, Miss Lambie said the great expansion of hospital bed aceommodation through building programmes had required additionai staff. Also, the proportion of registered nurses to student nurses had ' increased materially because of new 'treatments and the need for more supervision of student nurses. Many new jpositions in pubiic health and industrial 'nursing had developed, and there had been an increase iu private nursing. Also, there had been a decrease in the number of new student nurses admitted to training during the depresBion. Spoaking of the training of nurses, ■Miss Lambio said there had been a great deal ol! criticism in Great Britain of the present system of training nurfses, as it had been found that th6 averago nurso taking up this work had little or no knowledge of preventive Or social nursing. This difficulty had ariSen because the education of nursOs had been govetOed largely by tho sthfl&ng demands of hospitals rather than by the av&ilable clinical and theoretical Oxperience. , "AlthoUgh somo stbps have already been taken in New 24aland by tha" Nurses and Midwives5 RegistratiOn Board to widOn tho scope of training and cvety nurse, before qualifying, must have had experience in mirsing ohildren and infeetious diseases, there are still improvoments which can be mide if only hospital boards will realise that they are responsible for an educational programme, and that the training school does not exist just to staff tho hospital incxpensively, " said Miss Lkmbie.