TARANAKI HOSPITAL BOARD.

Taranaki Daily News, 21 September 1922, Page 2

TARANAKI HOSPITAL BOARD.

OPUNAKE COTTAGE HOSPITAL. DAY OFF FOR NURSING STAFF. The monthly meeting of the Taranaki Hospital and Charitable Aid Board was hel*£ yesterday. Present: Messrs. S. Vickers, J. Sutherland, G. Capper, .T. Young, M. O'Brien, J/. Andrews, B, R. Cattley, and E. Gilmour. Leave of absence was granted to Mr. A. H. Halcombe, while Mr. Vickers was elected; to the chair in the absence of Mr. Fraser, chairman of the board. . Mr. S.. C. C." Sinclair, secretary, of -the Opunake Cottage Hospital Committee, intimated that a sub-committee had interviewed Dr. Watt, and the, committee recommended that tris offer to attend, all those patients unable, to pay his medical .fees for £l5O be accepted by the board. The committee nlse recommended that patients paying the medical fees be charged at a . lower rate than others during the period they are Inmates of the cottage hospital. ■ .-xi-.: Members of the board were opposed to Cthe second recommendation, and, after a short discussion on the matter of medical fees in general, a sub-committee, consisting of the chairman and Messrs. Vickers, Cattley, Halcombfc, Young and O’Brien, was set up with power to act, to consider the whole (matter of rules for the Opunake Hospital and the fees to. be paid to a doctor. On the motion of Mr. O’Brien, seconded by Mr. Cattley, it was decided to hand oyer the management of the property left to the board by the late Mrs. Rachel Taylor at Opunake to the Opunake Cottage Hospital Committee. The revenue is to be used towards the maintenance of the cottage hospital.- • HOLIDAY TOR NURSING STAFF. Mr. Gilmour was given leave to submit an amended notice of motion, and he moved that the Medical Superintendent be asked to arrange that each member of the nursing staff be given one day holiday in each fortnight to come Into force April 1 next, and that provision be made for the extra staff necessarily required ip next year’s estimates. Speaking to the motion, Mr. Gilmour said he had always been in favor of giving the girls a half-holiday in each week, but this would require six extra nurses, for whom they had not the accommodation. His proposal would require only three extra nurses, for whom there was accommodation, and the medical superintendent had reported In favor of it. Mr. Andrews considered that they were not in. a position to incur any further financial responsibilities. They were going to the bad very fast, and if the motion was carried they would have to find some hundreds a year more. The nurses got a day off every month but many did not take it. How was the expenditure going to be met? Every extra nurse appointed meant an extra £lO9 a year more. Mr. Vickers said that the matter had come before the board some months ago, and it was referred to the Medical Superintendent. He had reported adversely on it, not because he was opposed to the day off, but because they did not have the accommodation. He now reported that the time had come to grant this leave. Mr. Andrews had said that they had plenty of probationers coming forward, but the speaker said they had always plenty of resignations of trained nurses who left for hospitals where there were better conditions. In view of the fact that some hospitals had given a day off a week he thought that if tt were possible they should get a day off a fortnight. While it was a matter of expense they could not allow the ratepayers to “sweat” the nurses. The motion was carried.

The general, manager (Mr. E. Holden) reported that the lawns round the nurses’ home had been sown down, while a cartway from Barrett Street - boundary to the nurses’ home kitchen had been fotmed and clinkers put down. The' hoard should now consider the erection of a suitable fence along Barrett Street and the entrance to West Street. The disposal of the effluent from a septic tank at the home was nearly completed, and he hoped that the new scheme would give every satisfaction. During the month inquiries had been made from the Napier Hospital Board for information concerning the board’s soap making plant and laundry, equipment. The medical superintendent, Dr. E. A. Walker, reported that during the month of August the patients admitted to tfie hospital numbered 108, discharged 99, died 4, leaving 100 in the at the date of the report. The highest number of patients for one day was 108, and the daily average was 97.03, while the number of operations performed was 53. The report added that with the highest dally average since 1921, August was a busy month in all departments. The Isolation block was continually open. Eight cases of diphtheria and seven of scarlet fever were admitted during the month, while two cases of pulmonary tuberculosis had left for treatment at the Otaki sanatorium.

The dispenser (Mr. C. F. B. Perrin), reported that Messenger Bowler and Warder Turner had returned to duty, and that thanks were due to Mr. T. N. Blackball and Mr. W. E. Blundell for the loan of horse? .and plough for use in preparing the grounds around the nurses’ home, also to Mr. Blundell for the loan of a .horse and dray.

The board passed a resolution of thanks to these gentlemen for their generosity: The matron of the Rangiatea Home (Mrs. A. Bayley) reported that during the month there had been two deaths and one admission.'There are at present in the home 3Q males and six females. The farm manager (Mr. W. C. Noble) reported that the herd of 13 cows had produced 11,916 pounds of milk. Twenty-three dozen duck eggs and 10 poultry had been sent to the hospital. With the exception of two cows the herd was in a good condition. Lambert's Ratie produced under official test 512 lb of butter-fat during the year, and Tukapa Flora. 6021 b. for the same period. DISTRICT. NURSES. .Nurse L. Fraser, at Uruti, reported that four people had come for advice and three for dressings, while Nurse McFa.dgen reported that she had nursed four Europeans and two Maoris at the nurses’ cottage at Opunake, and one European at her own home. Tn addition she had attended and advised one European and one Maori and had had one Maori maternity case. The nurse added that there were a number of cases of pneumonia in and around the district. GENERAL. The Department of Health advised that it was in accord with tlie board’s proposals to acquire West and Down in order to improve the access to the New Plymouth hospital. The Department asked that it be advised at the, earliest possible date of the purchase price' the Board would be called on to pay. so that the Minister might be approached fdr his consent. The Director of the Division of Nursing Department of Health intimated that the services of Miss Shirtliff, general and maternity nurse, had been secured as locum for Miss McFadgcn and that she would proceed to Opunake on October 2. The general manager (Mr. E. Holden) reported that a ton of cotton wool dressings had come to hand. The dressings had been obtained in London and landed in New Zealand at about half the cost of the saune dressing on the New Zealand market, and this mearit a considerable saving to the board. Members were unanimous in expressing their appreciation of Mr. Holden’s’ energy and foresight in the matter.