Practical hints on district nursing / by Amy Hughes.

  • Hughes, Amy
Date:
1897
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Practical hints on district nursing / by Amy Hughes. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    many of their ways, the dirt and untidiness of the houses, the want of appliances, are trials to the earnest worker. There is plenty of bright- ness also, however, and she must take sunshine with her. A bright smile and a cheery word will alter the tone of a whole day for many a patient, taking them out of themselves for a time and cheering them up. Great tact and perfect courtesy are always essential; however poor, “an Englishman’s home is his castle,” and nurses in their zeal to effect improvements must not overlook this. Courtesy overcomes prejudice in time, and the roughest of patients and friends insensibly soften when met by uniform pleasant- ness and politeness. Refinement is another necessary quality ; if not genuine, only acquired, it is apt to be laid aside in the details of district work. Educated intelligence gives the nurse a higher grasp of her calling, and the wider her knowledge of “ men and manners ” so much the more can she ad- vance its cause. Common Sense. Common sense, unfortunately, is a quality which is somewhat rare, and very few people cultivate the small quantity they possess. There cannot be rules and regulations for every diffi- culty that may arise, and district nurses must learn to look at and judge things from more