SCIENCE SIFTINGS

New Zealand Tablet, 15 May 1919, Page 46

SCIENCE SIFTINGS

By “Volt.”

Color Cure Treatment. _ , Of late years many experiments have been mad© in the treatment of disease — of them very daring, and all most interesting. No field has offered wider scope for these than nerve disease, with which also so many of our returned men are afflicted, states the Sydney Red Cross Record. A notable feature of the new Nerve Home, shortly. to be opened at Russell Lea, Five Dock, Sydney, New South Wales, is a ward, decorated in colors, especially selected for their value in helping to restore shattered nerves. Miss Edith Walker has been instrumental in introducing the “color cure” into this home, and has been assisted in carrying out the scheme by a young Sydney artist, Mr. R. de Mestre, who is making a special study of the therapeutic value of color. This ward is similar to one which has recently been equipped in a London hospital, and is painted in colors, which would suggest a day in spring. The ceiling is of the blue of a summer sky, and this note is repeated in the frieze in a lighter shade. The picture rail is of a delicate green, which leads the eye gently on to the sunlit yellow of the walls. On the floor is a linoleum of same green as the picture rail, slightly deeper in tone. The furniture and wood work are painted a pale primrose, and the bed-covers are the same color, the bedsteads and other fittings being aluminium color. The light can be regulated by curtains and blinds. On dull days the light may filter through the open shutters of primrose-colored curtains of deep violet. There is very little pattern in the room, except for a faint design on the bed-spreads, and on the wall is a decorative landscape, painted especially for its surroundings by R. de Mestre. This venture is of a pioneer character as far as color treatment is concerned in Australia. Naturally everyone is most keenly interested in watching the result, and the matron of Russell Lea will observe very closely the effect on the patients of this new treatment, From a purely artistic point of view, the effect is delightful. Those completely ignorant of therapeutics can realise the soothing and calming value of this carefully-thought-out harmony of coloring, and can understand the cheerful, yet restful effect such surroundings must have upon a depressed or restless mind. Speaking of the Kemp-Prosser Ward, a similar room in London Hospital, Dr. Furber says: “The Kemp-Prosser Ward has given considerable satisfaction,” and that “the general contentment prevailing in the ward is a most valuable factor in the treatment.” The patients who are at present occupying the room at Russell Lea say that already they think that they sleep better. This will be pleasant news to the lady who is making this fascinating experiment, and of whose personal interest and affection for the returned men this is another proof.