The Machine Age and the Nurse

IN preparation for this address, to which I unwisely committed myself some months ago, members of the Teachers College faculty, who know far more of the subject than do I, have been flooding me with books, pamphlets, and documents of all types. As far as I can see, from reading the surveys, the education of nurses seems to be in a bad way. They fail to get the preparation that !'they need. Their training is in an Ancient stage of apprenticeship. All over this country there are an extraordinary number of nursing schools attached to hospitals without a single person whose primary duty it is to teach the nurse, and there are many others with only a limited as well as an improperly trained faculty. At the present time, in the midst of this economic depression, nursing education is in a curious dilemma. There are many people in need of nursing care, and yet there are many nurses who are out of work. As conditions grow worse, this difficulty increases. Hospitals are among the first to suffer when hard times come. Donations decrease. Fewer people are able to pay, and they take more time to settle their obligations. Be-