Report from the Select Committee on Nursing Homes (Registration).

  • Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Select Committee on Nursing Homes (Registration)
Date:
1926
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report from the Select Committee on Nursing Homes (Registration). Source: Wellcome Collection.

    202/284 (page 176)
    8 June, 1926. ] 2877. That is my idea. Perhaps the girls going at 18, say, for two years, and then starting training at 20?— I should not like to count the training they get in these nursing homes. 2878. Half of it. It is done now in certain hospitals where they have a sort of convalescent places and other sub- sidiary hospitals; half of their time is allowed for their general training. That is actually in practice now. If you had a similar standard of nursing in these nursing homes, why should not the sane thing apply thereP—You probably have in mind a good nursing home; J am thinking of all these other nursing homes. 2879. But it is after the Bill is passed, after registration has taken place, when _ you and the other Inspectors are main- taining this high standard; it is after that ?—After the Bill is passed; then I will agree. Dr. Vernon Davies. 2880. I want to refer back to the Borough being the authority. You have in mind Manchester, which is a County Borough and a very huge City; but I want to go away from the Borough alto- gether and get to the Urban District Council, which is what we call a Local Authority. JI. distinguish between a County Authority, a County Borough Authority, and a Local Authority. Now would you think that the Local Authority should be made the inspecting authority ? —I do think it should be the Local Authority. I must plead great ignorance in seeing the difficulties that people have; because we have not got those difficulties ourselves, we cannot see them. 9881. You are in Manchester P—Yes; you mean that the Local Medical Officer of Health should have control of the Nursing Homes. That is_ practically what it means in the smaller places. 2289. There is the question of local tittle-tattle and local jealousies?—Yes, I see that difficulty. I know what diffi- culties there are with the Midwives Act and 1 think those same difficulties would - probably arise. 2883. It would be worse for a nursing home ?—Yes, I quite agree. 9884. You think in the case of the Local Authority, not the County Authority, it would perhaps not be abused 2—Yes, I must take back what I have already said. 9885. Would you rather go back to the County or the County Borough?—When [ Continued. you are talking about those small places, I quite agree. 2886. You either have to have the County Authority, or the County Borough Authority, or the Local Authority. The Local Authority may be a small town of 5,000 inhabitants?—Yes. What would happen in a big city hke Manchester ? 2887. You are all right there. Chairman. 2888. It would be the County Borough Authority P—Then I will take back what I said. Dr. Vernon Davies. 2889. You will go back to a County r— Yes. 2890. You said that there might be delay in the county, particularly with regard to the notification of certain in- fectious diseases. You have not really noticed that in connection with lacal cases of puerperal fever, have youP At least, I did not when I was in Lancashire ; I found that the County Authorities went down very quickly; there was never any delay in the case of puerperal fever or of ophthalmia. That is my experience of a small Local Authority; you perhaps have not had that experience. You are Man- chester; you are, of course, quite apart from the Lancashire County Council. Re- ferring to the inspection of doctors’ nursing homes, do you think that doctors specially exempted or have — special privilegesP—I think you are going to make it very difficult. 2891. I did not ask you that; never mind about the difficulty. Do you think that they should have certain privileges in these cases which the rest of the people are not to haveP—yYes, I think so. 2892. Why ?—I think it would be very home and have somebody not quite so qualified walk into his Home and make suggestions. 2898. It does not necessarily mean that the person was not quite so qualified. It depends who does the inspecting. I am not talking of the inspecting officer now. I want to get at this: should the doctor be exempt from inspection because he is a doctor ?P—Yes, I think so, from inspec- tion, but not from registration. 2894. You would still exempt him ?— Yes. 2895. Take the case of certain doctors who will take perhaps one case, or per-