Grace General Hospital - Our Days of Grace Yearbook (Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada)

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J edicated to Patient’s X ament The Doctor took my shirt away; He did it for the best; He said, ‘It’s very cold today’ And took away my vest; Then, having nothing more to say He hit me in the chest. Oh, he did clout my ribs about Till I was bruised and red Then stood and listened to my spine To see if I was dead, And when I shouted “Ninety-nine!’ He simply shook his head. He rather thought that rain would fall, He made me hop about the hall, And savagely he said, There’s nothing wrong with you at all - You’d better go to bed! “Oh you must eat no scrap of meat, No rabbit, bird or fish; Apart from that have what you please, But not potato, bread, or cheese; Not butter, alcohol, or peas: Not sausage, egg, and ratafias A very starchy dish; Have any other foods but these— HAVE ANYTHING YOU WISH! But at and after every meal And twice an hour between Take this—and this—and this—AND THIS In water and quinine, And wash it down with licorice And nitro-glycerine. You must not smoke, or read a book, You must not eat or drink; You must not bicycle or run You must not talk to anyone; It’s better not to think. A daily bath I don’t advise; It’s dangerous to snore; But let your life be otherwise As active as before. And don’t imagine you are ill, I beg you not to mope; There’s nothing wrong with you — but still While there is life, there’s hope.” I woke and screamed a hideous scream As greedy children do that eat too much vanilla cream For I was having ‘Flu’ And it was just an awful dream — But, ail the same, it’s true. our f atients ‘ Patient I don’t know how rich he is in dollars, I never heard him say. But he has a smile upon his face And wears it every day. You’ll soon forget what’s ailing you If you get his point of view. And, although the clouds seem very dark, You’ll see the sun come shining through. You’ll like him when you meet him And you’ll find it worth your while To follow in the footsteps Of your friend behind the smile. Ode to the JNi urses Come to the hospital, known as Grace, Straight down Arlington, you’ll find the place. We have the finest nurses, With big fat purses. Who give you lots of needles and soap, To send you home well, is what they hope. For their kind attention, They receive no specific pension, Some cranky patients do them curse, While others, if they could, would them reimburse. They take your pulse and temperature And all the cranks’ remarks endure, They come along with a red hot poultice Slam it on, and take no notice, “Oh!”, says the doctor, “that’s too hot.” “Oh”, says the nurse, “I’m sure it’s not.” Then they come with a needle so blunt To get it in, they have to grunt. But when they pull it out, what a lump! The patient’s posterior is blue and red If it were not for this, they’d think him dead, Now these fine girls in blue and white They worked both day and night To ease the body from suffering and pain, And some work for God, your soul to gain, So let’s give these girls a smile, a kind word or two, For they are the ones who bring you through. —A Patient on 2nd Centre. 77

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O.JV. 4. ennia [ yVleeting - 3 Calif-ax - itne I960 by Miss B. Seeman It is fitting that you should have something about the Biennial Meeting of the Canadian Nurses’ Association in your Yearbook—for, we, at the Grace Hospital played our small part in that Biennial which may well prove to be a landmark in Canadian Nursing History. The reason for this? Grace was one of the twenty-five schools chosen for the pilot study —and the report of that study occupied the spotlight at this Convention. Now, let’s start at the beginning. This was a church service Sunday evening—It augers well for the future of Canadian nursing that the large ancient Anglican church—St. Paul’s—where the Protestant service was held—was filled to capacity. Monday morning proceedings commenced with wel¬ comes from city and provincial dignitaries—the group on the platform at this time having been “piped” in by two student nurses wearing kilts of the Nova Scotian tartan. The remainder of the morning session was given over to the “keynote” address. Each biennium—at the closing session— the President gives a watchword for the ensuing two years. For 1958-60 it was “Faith”—and so the opening address at the 1960 meetings was on “Faith”. It was given us by Rev. John B. Hardie— a professor of Old Testament literature—described by our President, Mile. Alice Girard as being a “man of great humility with a sense of humour.” No one who heard this address will ever forget it. Next day was occupied with a discussion of the report of the pilot study—“Behind the Scenes on Accreditation” being presented by Rev. Sr. Denise Lefebore who had chaired the planning committee and “Spotlight on Nursing Education” by Miss Helen Mussallem, Director of the study. The Presi¬ dent “confided” to the meeting that during delibera¬ tions in the Executive meetings, Sr. Lefebore had become known as the “Mother of Accreditation” and Miss Mussallem as “Miss Accreditation”. To over-simplify and tell you briefly about this session —the study has brought to light such facts as that only four of the twenty-five schools surveyed would likely have met Accreditation standards; that one- third of the instructors in Schools of Nursing are not qualified; that there is a wide discrepancy in conditions in nursing schools. There are also today many different types of nursing programs including two-year programs for registered nurses, while there has been a suggestion in some areas that the practical nurse course be extended to two years. With these along with other considerations—the recommendations of the report encompassed the following—that the entire field of nursing education be studied; that the C.N.A. establish an Accredita¬ tion program and that, before this is initiated, Schools be assisted to upgrade their educational programs. When the voting took place on Friday, the report was adopted without a dissenting vote— amid high excitement and exultation. In fact, it was greeted with song. Other programs centred around such present-day problems as rehabilitation—showing the part played by a psychologist, social worker, nurse and others— in the rehabilitation of one individual; hospital insurance and its implications for nursing; nursing legislation; and discussion of committee reports and activities of the C.N.A. Many special speakers con¬ tributed immeasurably to the deliberations. There were special programs and entertainment for students, too, and their reports were excellent. They were disappointed when a motion tt establish a C.S.N.A. was defeated—we trust only temporarily. It does need more planning. It wasn’t all work. The Nova Scotians made plans for our comfort and entertainment that will be difficult to equal and impossible to surpass—and that in the face of a strike that forced them to revise their original plans. There was a garden party in the beautiful public gardens—17 acres—right across from the Lord Nelson Hotel where Major McGregor and I stayed; a cruise around Halifax harbour; a lobster supper, and an evening reception—to say nothing of the multitude of Alumnae get-togethers and meetings with old friends. One personal note in closing. Attending such a Biennial is a very great privilege that comes to fortunate people; I found it exciting, challenging and humbling. When your turn comes, I can only hope that your pleasure will be as great as was mine. 76

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INDISPENSABLE Sometime when you are feeling important, Sometime when your ego is in bloom, Sometime when you take it for granted, You’re the best qualified in the room. Sometime when you feel that your going, Would leave an unfillable hole, Just follow these simple instructions And see how it humbles your soul. Take a bucket and fill it with water Put your hand in it up to your wrist, Pull it out and the hole that’s remaining Is the measure of how you’ll be missed. You may splash all you wish when you enter You can stir up the water galore, But stop and you’ll find in a minute That it looks quite the same as before. The moral of this quaint example Is — do the best you can, Be proud of yourself, but remember There is no indispensable man. Anonymous. YOU TELL ON YOURSELF You tell on yourself by the friends you seek By the very manner in which you speak. By the way you employ your leisure time, By the use you make of dollar and dime. You tell what you are by the things you wear, By the spirit in which your burdens you bear, By the kind of things at which you laugh, By the records you play on the phonograph. You tell what you are by the way you walk, By the things of which you delight to talk, By the manner in which you bear defeat, By so simple a thing as how you eat. By the books you choose from the well filled shelf In these ways and more you tell on yourself. So there is really no particle of sense, In an effort to keep up false pretense. ON SECOND THOUGHT Whatever I said in anger, Whatever I shouted in spite, I’m sorry I spoke so quickly, I thought of some worse ones tonight. A Nonny Mouse. ANTISEPTIC BABIES The antiseptic baby And the prophylactic pup; Were playing in the garden When the bunny gambolled up. They gazed upon the creature With a loathing undisguised; It wasn’t disinfected And it wasn’t sterilized. They said he was a microbe And a hotbed of disease; So they boiled him in a vapour Of a thousand odd degrees. They froze him in a freezer That was cold as banished hope; And they washed him in Permanganate With carbolated soap. In Sulphurated Hydrogen They steeped his wiggly ears; They trimmed his frisky whiskers With a pair of hard-boiled shears. Then they donned their rubber mittens And they took him by the hand, And elected him a member Of the fumigated band . . . There is not a micrococcus In the garden where they play; They bathe in pure Iodoform A dozen times a day. And each imbibes, his ration From a hygienic cup — The bunny and the baby And the prophylactic pup. ON GETTING UP I am worried till I’m weary O’er this problem grave and deep, Shall I sleep and lose my breakfast Or shall I rise and lose my sleep?! KLASSROOM KWIRK Teacher: “Where’s the amniotic fluid?” Gabby: “In the eye!” Sometimes it is better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and remove all doubt. There are three sides to every question: yours, mine, and the truth. People, like pins, are useless when they lose their heads. When you argue with a fool be sure he is not similarly occupied. Medico: “Ask the accident victim what his name is, so we can notify his family.” Pro. (few minutes later): “He says his family know his name.” 78