How to become a nurse : the nursing profession : how and where to train being a guide to training for the profession of a nurse ... is given / edited by Sir Henry Burdett, K.C.B., K.C.V.O.

  • Burdett, Henry C., Sir, 1847-1920
Date:
[1915?]
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: How to become a nurse : the nursing profession : how and where to train being a guide to training for the profession of a nurse ... is given / edited by Sir Henry Burdett, K.C.B., K.C.V.O. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    woman. Is there nothing else which can be done, it may be asked, in the last year before entering hospital, to ad¬ vance the future career? There are two useful subjects in which it is quite possible to become proficient before the probationer period begins, viz.: (i) massage and (2) dis¬ pensing. Application should be made to the Secretary, the Incorporated Society of Trained Masseuses, 157 Great Portland Street, London, W., for particulars as to training in massage, the schools recommended, and so forth. The course for the Society’s examination is 6 months. Par¬ ticulars as to cost, etc., of learning dispensing may be obtained from Miss Buchanan, Pharmaceutical Chemist, Gordon Hall, Gordon Square, London, W.C. A pre¬ liminary examination must be passed in English, Latin, a Modern Language, Arithmetic, Euclid and Algebra. In taking up either massage or dispensing, and both will prove of great advantage in the future, it is little use to work in an amateurish manner by getting a few hints from a friend or attempting to learn from books. To be of any use to a nurse both subjects need to be studied systematically under regular teachers, and unless profici¬ ency is attested by a certificate it will not count. Every accomplishment, such as music, singing, paint¬ ing, photography, needlework, gardening, etc., should be developed to the full, for they will bring a rich return in years to come as a source of refreshment. Lastly, as to physical fitness : it is wise for those who are not strong, yet feel a vocation for the nurse’s life, to get a doctor to report on their condition. If he reports that the heart and lungs are sound the general physique can probably be toned up by intelligent treatment. The teeth should be put in thorough order. A course of Swedish exercises will prove very helpful if practised with regular deep breathing daily, living and sleeping with open windows. There is one form of exercise open to all, which doctors are becoming unanimous in declaring to be the best, that may well be recommended to the waiting candi¬ date. This is walking. It has the advantage of being free from most of the risks and drawbacks accompanying