NURSING STAFF PRAISED

Southland Times, Issue 24236, 20 September 1940, Page 8

NURSING STAFF PRAISED

PRESENTATION OF MEDALLIONS

OUTSTANDING SUCCESS IN EXAMINATIONS

The Southland Hospital njirsing staff was praised for its efficiency and devotion to duty at a ceremony which was held in the Southland Hospital yesterday when six nurses were presented with medallions for passing the State examination taken at the end of the three-year training period. The members of the Hospital Board attended and during the ceremony interesting comment on the scale of nurses’ wages was made. Eleven nurses from the Southland Hospital entered for the examination and eight passed, three being awarded partial passes. Those who qualified were: Nurses N. C. Macintosh, E. R. Swale, L. C. Findlay, M. S. Langford, M. M. Egan, J. F. Gawn, E. D. Lyall and A. I. Rhind. Nurses Gawn and Rhind were absent, Nurse Gawn being now at Frankton and Nurse Rhind at Waipiata. Nurse L. Morrison received a special gift from the board, an inscribed volume, “Kings’ Nurse—Beggars’ Nurse,” in recognition of her feat in gaining a double distinction in the junior State examination. Nurse Morrison gained one of the two double distinctions awarded in New Zealand. The medallions and the gift to Nurse Morrison were presented by a member of the board, Miss H. L. Birss. The chairman of the board (Mr T. Golden) after congratulating the nurses said that the board was fortunate in having a particularly fine type of nurse in its hospitals. Their work had assumed greater importance during the war and their services would be as important as the work of soldiers.

“My memory of nursing goes back some considerable time,” said Dr J. A. Pottinger. “In the old days in Scotland nurses did not enter hospitals until they were 25 and in their first year they had very menial duties, such as cleaning brasses and scrubbing floors.” Nurses then received no payment during their training period, and they had to have a real liking for their job to be able to stand up to it. It was then considered that nursing was a profession into which the consideration of money did not enter very much, but this idea, it seemed, had since been exploded. A person entering the profession had to be prepared to work hard. THE SCALE OR WAGES “When we are told by some of our very well-intentioned political friends that you ought to be getting paid more, just remember that some of those who have gone before you were paid nothing when they were learning. “Remember that we were brought up in a hard school and if we seem hard it is perhaps due to that fact,” said Dr Pottinger. Congratulations were also extended to the successful nurses by Mr W. M. Norman and the superintendent of the hospital (Dr H. Hunter). The secretary of the board (Mr A. M. Williams) praised the work of the tutoring staff at the hospital, to whose efforts the success of the nurses could be largely attributed. The matron (Miss D. I. Buchanan) and the sisters, he said, had done splendid work and the standard of nursing at the hospital was as high as that in any other hospital in New Zealand. The tutoring staff had done very fine work, said the matron, and their difficulties had not been lessened by the war. • She thanked the doctors who had given lectures for their assistance and for the pains they had always taken. Nurses had to have a special liking for their work and tfie profession could not be considered primarily from the point of view of the monetary return.

FAREWELL FUNCTION AT BALFOUR

MR AND MRS ALEXANDER HONOURED There was a large and representative attendance of district residents at a social evening arranged in honour of Mr and Mrs J. N. Alexander, who are leaving the district. The chairman, Mr J. Liddell, asked Mr and Mrs J. N. Alexander to accept an envelope containing a cheque, and said that with it went the best wishes of the residents of the Balfour district. Mr E. W. Stevens, speaking on behalf of the Balfour and Longridge Caledonian Society, expressed regret at the departure of the guests. Mr Alexander, he said, had taken a very keen interest in the affairs of the society, especially the piping and dancing, and his place would be hard to fill. He wished him a happy retirement. Other speakers were Messrs J. Cowie (Rifle Club), A. Liddell (Gun Club), W. Bulmore (Pipe Band) and J. Y. Allan, of Gore. Mr Alexander replied on behalf of Mrs Alexander and himself. During the evening Mr and Mrs Alexander were presented with gifts from the members of the Caledonian Society.

BLUFF

Miss Joyce Urwin, Marine Parade, is staying in the North Island. Mrs G. Hicks, of Christchurch, was recently a visitor to Bluff. Miss I. Woods, Blackwater street, was the guest of Mrs C. Williams, Woodend, for the week-end. Miss Marjorie Dale, of Invercargill, spent the week-end with relations at Bluff: