OUTLINES OF A POLICY OF EBFORM 299 



notified by telephone, and, as soon as possible, a lady 

 "nurse inspector" visits the home and sees that 

 everjiihing is all right. Where the mother seems to 

 need her assistance, the nurse inspector gives it ; and 

 if it develops that the mother needs instruction, as 

 most do, friendly visits of the nurse inspector, which 

 are robbed of all official appearance, are continued 

 as long as necessary. The system works well and it is 

 the universal testimony of those I have consulted 

 concerning it that this education of mothers is most 

 successful.* 



In New York City, I have taken great pains to 

 observe the work of the special corps of nurses em- 

 ployed by the Health Department during the summer 

 months, and what has most impressed me has been 

 the educational side of their work. Few citizens, I 

 imagine, have any very clear idea of the work that 

 is done by these nurses in educating mothers. I have 

 seen a nurse teaching an Italian mother how to pre- 

 pare her baby's bed, for example, so that the child 

 could sleep restfuUy, and later seen the mother show- 

 ing several other Italian mothers how to do it. I 

 have seen mothers following every movement of the 

 nurse, as she cut off the clothes little babies had been 

 "sewed up for the winter" in and then properly 

 dressed them, with an intense interest which could 

 not be mistaken. The mothers want to learn and 

 are, therefore, teachable. One who has followed 



