A hand-book of nursing for family and general use.

Date:: [1878], ©1878

Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: A hand-book of nursing for family and general use. Source: Wellcome Collection.

237/274 (page 233)

for some weeks, the menstruation makes its appearance, the patient, or other responsible person, must ask advice of the physician as to the question whether or not she must be exchanged for another. 7. Healthy, full, and medium-sized breasts. The skin upon the breasts must be clear, free from every kind of eruption, not disfigured by warts or cicatrices; no nodules should be found within the breasts; the nipples must be free from fissures, and of medium length and size; the milk in the breasts must spurt out on pressure and be of good quality. 8. A healthy, well-nourished child. The best test of the fitness of a wet-nurse for the duty to be assigned her is the examination of her child. A healthy, well-nourished child is the best possible recom- mendation, provided, as we have before said, the age of the two infants correspond ; a thin, sickly child with a skin eruption outweighs all favorable qualifications. The death of the child from disease is a strong argu- ment against its mother, and a physician alone can decide whether she shall still be employed as wet-nurse; but if death occur through accident or very difficult labor, the same objection does not hold. In all cases where the child still lives, it must be thor- oughly examined, and furthermore, it must be certain that no other has been substituted for the real child. 9. Healthful residence. As a rule, wet-nurses from the country or healthful parts of town or country, should be chosen in preference to those living in large cities.