H.—3l

22

public. In order to promote free and frank inquiry and discussion, written questions may be handed in instead of asking the mother to get up and put her question personally. These meetings are very informal; more than half tho time the mothers are instructed by a thoroughly competent, specially trained, nurse with whom they talk over matters, and, if desired, arrange for follow-up instruction by the local Plunket nurse, or through any other available agency. ijjj'" (c.) Meetings for midwives : Instructions are sent out by the Director-General of Health to all registered midwives in the Dominion, asking them to attend special lectures and demonstrations bearing on the pre-natal and post-natal care and safeguarding of mother and child. At these meetings, as in the foregoing, those attending have the benefit of conferring and discussing matters with a specially qualified nurse, who arranges for further practical demonstrations or advice if desired. One can scarcely overstate the safeguard and boon it would be to mother and child if all the midwives—numbering between 1,500 and 2,000, registered and unregistered —to whom mothers, expectant and actual, turn for guidance and help during the most momentous and critical phases of life could be depended on to give uniform authoritative advice and assistance. Wrong advice is so often tendered and the wrong thing so often done that no pains should be spared to heighten the sense of responsibility and raise the standard of knowledge and proficiency among all those licensed or authorized in any way by the State to undertake the special care of mother and child before and after child-birth. Tho relationship of this to child welfare and the further lowering of the infantile-mortality rate is clearly brought out by studying the admirable charts and statistics bearing on mother and child published by the Government Statistician.

SECTION 2.—INFANTILE MORTALITY. I have prepared the following graphs, which will serve to.make the position quite clear. New Zealand Infantile-mortality Graphs.

This graph was prepared for lecturing purposes, in order to impress on nurses, midwives, and others the urgent need for reducing the deaths of infants in the first month after birth. The New Zealand birth-rate is given in round numbers as 30,000 per annum, and the incidence of tho deaths, month by month, is arrived at approximately on the basis of the figures for 1921.