FORM IV: SENIOR GRADE (Continued)
HOUSEHOLD SANITATION
As the principles of sanitation are based on a knowledge of bacteria,
the facts concerning these microscopic plants, which were taught in the
lesson on the "Preservation of Food", have only to be reviewed and
extended.
The following topics should he quickly reviewed:
1. Description of bacteria
2. Occurrence of bacteria
3. Favourable conditions for bacteria
4. Multiplication of bacteria
5. Useful bacteria
6. Harmful bacteria.
It is with the harmful bacteria that our lesson on sanitation deals. The
pupils already know that some kinds belonging to this class cause the
decay of food, and now they are ready to be told that other harmful
kinds of microscopic plants gain entrance to our bodies and cause
disease. Concerning these, the following outline of facts should be
taken:
1. MEANS OF BACTERIA ENTERING THE BODY
(1) Through the respiratory organs
(2) Through the digestive tract
(3) Through the broken skin.
2. COMMON DISEASE-PRODUCING BACTERIA
(1) Those entering the respiratory
organs.--Mumps, scarlet fever, whooping-cough,
diphtheria, measles, pneumonia
(2) Those entering the digestive
tract.--Typhoid, cholera, tuberculosis
(3) Those coming through cuts, etc.--Skin
diseases like ringworm, blood poisoning,
lockjaw (tetanus).
[Illustration: Sink and sewer connection T--Trap. W--Waste Pipe.
H.D.--House drain. S.--Sewer.]
If housekeepers do not exercise care, these disease-producing bacteria
may enter the home, and finding there all the conditions which they
require, they will multiply, and become a menace to the family.
3. METHODS OF SANITATION
Since bacteria are too small to be seen, it is very hard to deal with
them. The housekeeper has the following ways of protecting the
household:
(1) By having all drain pipes trapped:
(2) By keeping the house free from lodging
places for bacteria:
(_a_) Keep the house clean and free of dust.
(_b_) Wash garbage pails and sinks daily and
scald them and drain pipes at least once a
week.
(_c_) Keep the refrigerators, cupboards, and
receptacles for food clean, and allow no
spoiled food to remain in them.
(_d_) Wash and sterilize the soiled clothing
once a week.
(_e_) Keep the cellar well aired and clean;
allow no decaying material to remain in it.
(_f_) Keep the door-yards clean; allow no
scraps of food, cleaning water, or sweepings to
be thrown near the house.
(3) By keeping the supply of food from disease-producing bacteria:
(_a_) Use screens to keep out flies, which
transfer bacteria from their bodies to food.
(_b_) Wash fresh fruit and vegetables before
using.
(_c_) Boil for twenty minutes water of doubtful
purity.
(4) By keeping the bodies of the family strong and healthy, so
that if bacteria gain an entrance they will be resisted and
overcome:
(_a_) Provide well-balanced, nutritious food.
(_b_) Supply suitable clothing to protect the
body.
(_c_) See that there is an abundant supply of
fresh air, night and day.
4. DISPOSAL OF WASTE IN VILLAGES AND RURAL DISTRICTS
(1) Burn all combustible material.
(2) Bury tins, broken dishes, etc.
(3) Feed refuse food to animals or empty it
into a pit dug for the purpose, and cover with
a layer of earth from time to time.
(4) Throw slop water at a distance from the
house and well, and plant stalky growths like
sunflowers, which absorb the waste.
5. METHODS OF DISINFECTING
Where bacterial disease is known to exist, the utmost care should be
taken to subject everything that has come in contact with the patient to
a process which will kill the disease-producing plants. Only two ways of
doing this are known:
(1) Subject the bacteria to extreme heat which
will kill them--
(_a_) Burn everything that can be burned.
(_b_) Boil bed and body linen.
(_c_) Scald dishes.
(_d_) Scald or bake utensils.
(2) Use chemicals to destroy the germs--
(_a_) Use chemical solutions to wash surfaces,
materials, or utensils.
(_b_) Seal the rooms and burn chemicals to
produce vapours which will destroy bacteria.
NOTE.--Directions for the use of chemicals are
given under the lesson on "Home Nursing".
HOME NURSING
This part of the work does not require a special equipment, though it is
an advantage to have one. An ingenious teacher, with the co-operation of
her pupils, will invent plans for providing whatever is necessary for
demonstration. Pupils living near the school can supply many of the
needed materials.
A doll and doll's bed may be used to teach bed making and the changing
of bed-clothing while the patient is in bed. The doll may also be used
to illustrate the method of giving a patient a bath in bed and of
changing the body clothing, if such information is desired.
In some cases, a manual training pupil might construct the bed, and the
sewing class the mattress, bed-clothing, and doll's underwear. If this
were the property of the school, the girls could take turns in making
the bed every day and in laundering the clothing at home once a week.
It is desirable that the instruction in home nursing be given in two
lessons. These may be outlined as follows:
LESSON I
THE SICK ROOM
1. Location.--The room should be on the sunny side of the house and be
as large and airy as possible. The top floor is quieter, but
necessitates many steps.
2. Furniture.--All furniture should admit of easy cleaning. Small rugs
are better than a carpet, as they can be easily removed for cleaning. In
infectious diseases, only bare necessities should be kept in the room.
The bed should be single and placed so as to be accessible from both
sides. It should be high enough to prevent the nurse stooping. The
bed-clothing should be of light weight and washable.
A bedside table should be provided, also a couch for the nurse. A screen
will be found useful to prevent draughts and to shade the light.
3. Ventilation.--A thermometer should be used, and the temperature kept
at 65 degrees to 68 degrees, or, in special diseases, according to the
doctor's orders.
An abundant supply of fresh air should be provided day and night. To
secure this, there must be two openings, one to admit pure, fresh air,
and the other to let out the impure air. These openings are preferably
on opposite sides of the room and at different heights. If there is only
one window, it should be made to open at both top and bottom. In extreme
cases, an adjoining room may be aired and, after the fresh air is warm,
it may be admitted to the sick room.
4. Care.--The room should be kept very clean and neat. All cleaning
should be quietly done, so as not to annoy or disturb the patient. The
floor, wood-work, and furniture should be dusted with a damp cloth.
Flowers should be removed at night and should have fresh water daily.
No food or medicine should he left in the room. Soiled dishes or
clothing should be removed as soon as possible and, in cases of
infectious diseases, placed in water containing a disinfectant.
All excreta should be taken away immediately and, if necessary,
disinfected before being emptied.
METHODS OF DISINFECTING
1. Dishes or clothing.--(1) Make a solution using one part of carbolic
acid to twenty parts of water (six teaspoonfuls to a pint of water) and
let it stand for half an hour. Soak the articles in this for two hours.
(2) Use formalin according to directions. (3) Use bichloride tablets
according to directions. (This turns clothes yellow.)
NOTE.--These solutions must be renewed every
twenty-four hours, if exposed to the air.
2. Excreta.--Cover the excreta with one of the above solutions and allow
it to stand for half an hour before emptying.
LESSON II
THE PATIENT
1. Care of the bed.--The bed of a sick person should be kept specially
clean and fresh. The linen should be changed every day, or oftener if
soiled. Where the supply of linen is limited, or where there is pressure
of work, a good airing and sunning may occasionally take the place of
laundering.
In making the bed, it should be kept in mind that the under sheet
requires unusual tucking in at the head, to prevent its slipping down
and becoming wrinkled. The upper sheet should receive extra attention at
the foot, as it is apt to pull up.
When changing the sheets with the patient in bed, work as deftly and
quietly as possible. Have the clean sheets warmed and the room
comfortably heated. Begin with the under sheet as follows:
(1) To change the under sheet.--Turn the
patient over on the side away from you and fold
the soiled sheet in flat folds close to the
body. Lay the clean sheet on the side of the
bed near you, tuck it in, and fold half of it
against the roll of soiled sheet, so that both
can be slipped under the body at once. Turn the
patient back to the opposite side, on the clean
sheet, pull out the soiled sheet, and tuck the
clean one smoothly in place.
(2) To change the upper sheet.--Loosen all the
clothes at the foot of the bed. Spread a clean
sheet and blanket, wrong side up, on top of the
other bedclothes. Pin the clean clothes at the
head of the bed or get the patient to hold
them. Gradually slip down and draw out the
soiled sheet and blanket. Tuck all in place.
2. Care of the diet.--Recovery from sickness in many cases depends more
upon the right kind of food than on medicine. The importance of proper
diet should have been impressed on the minds of the pupils by their
lessons on food, in the Junior Grade of Form IV. They may now be shown
that, in sickness, the responsibility of the choice of food is
transferred from the patient to the doctor or nurse. Hence it is most
important that a person acting as nurse should be trained in food values
and proper methods of cooking. She should also be capable of exercising
daintiness and artistic skill in serving, so that the appearance of the
food may tempt the patient to eat it.
[Illustration: Invalid's tray]
It should not be necessary to review the comparative values of the
well-known foods or the best methods of applying heat to make and keep
these foods digestible; it may be taken for granted that the class
remembers these facts. The time may be more profitably used in naming
and discussing special dishes which are included in invalid cookery.
Recipes may be given for any of these which the pupils desire or the
teacher chooses, and one or two of the dishes which require very little
time to make, may be prepared.
For the sake of convenience, diets for the sick may be classified as
_Milk_, _Liquid_, _Light_, and _Full_. These terms are an easy way of
indicating a certain range of foods.
Milk Diet.--Milk, butter-milk, koumyss, kephyr.
NOTE.--Lime-water may be given with sweet milk,
one part to three of milk.
Liquid Diet.--Milk diet, beef juice or beef-tea, broths, gruels, and
sometimes jelly.
Light Diet.--Soup, white meat of fowl, white fish, oysters, soft-cooked
eggs, custard, milk puddings, fruit, gelatine jellies.
Full Diet.--Any food that is not particularly hard to digest.
NOTE.--Plenty of water should be given in all
diets.
POULTICES
A poultice is used to reduce inflammation and should be as large as the
affected part.
The kinds in ordinary use are:
1. Mustard poultice, used as a counter irritant.
2. Linseed, bread, or potato poultice, used to soothe.
Directions for a mustard poultice:
1. For a very strong poultice, mix pure mustard to a paste with warm
water; spread on a piece of cheesecloth or muslin, leaving a margin of
an inch; fold over the margin, and cover with thicker cotton or paper.
2. For milder poultices use flour to reduce the mustard as follows:
(1) 1 part flour to 1 part mustard
(2) 2 parts flour to 1 part mustard
(3) 3 parts flour to 1 part mustard.
Directions for linseed, bread, or potato poultices:
Use boiling water to mix the above to the
consistency of thick porridge, and spread as in
the mustard poultice, excepting that the layer
of poultice is made much thicker, in order to
retain the moisture and heat.
FOMENTATIONS
These are much the same in their effects as poultices, but are sometimes
more convenient.
Directions for fomentations:
Spread a towel over a large basin, place a
flannel in the towel and pour boiling hot water
over it. Fold the towel over the flannel,
gather the dry ends of the towel in either
hand, and wring. Carry to the patient, shake
out the flannel, and apply.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
The following books are recommended for reference, the more useful being
marked with an asterisk:
THE HOME
Furnishing of a Modest Home. Daniels, $1.00. Atkinson, Mentzner & Co.,
New York.
Home Decoration. Priestman, $1.50. Whitcomb & Barrows, Boston.
*Care of a House. Clark, $1.50. The Macmillan Company of Canada, Ltd.,
Toronto.
SCIENCE AND SANITATION
*Elementary Household Chemistry. Snell, $1.25. The Macmillan Company of
Canada, Ltd., Toronto.
Chemistry of Cooking and Cleaning. Richards and Elliott, $1.00. Whitcomb
& Barrows, Boston.
Fuels of the Household. White, 75c. Whitcomb & Barrows, Boston.
*Story of Germ Life. Conn, 35c. Whitcomb & Barrows, Boston.
*Household Foes. Ravenhill, 75c. McClelland, Goodchild & Stewart, Ltd.,
Toronto.
*The Source, Chemistry, and Use of Food Products. Bailey, $1.75.
Blakiston, Son & Co., Philadelphia.
FOOD AND DIETETICS
*Food Products. Sherman, $2.00. The Macmillan Company of Canada, Ltd.,
Toronto.
Food Materials and their Adulterations. Richards, $1.00. Whitcomb &
Barrows, Boston.
*Food and Dietetics. Hutchison, $3.00. Wm. Wood & Co., 51 Fifth Avenue,
New York, N.Y.
Principles of Human Nutrition. Jordan, $1.75. The Macmillan Company of
Canada, Ltd., Toronto.
*Care and Feeding of Children. Dr. Emmet Holt, 75c. D. Appleton, N.Y.
(McAinsh, Toronto)
Care of the Baby. Dr. J. P. C. Griffith, $1.50. W. B. Saunders & Co.,
Philadelphia.
A Little Talk about the Baby. Helen MacMurchy, M.D. Free. The Provincial
Board of Health, Toronto.
Farmers' Bulletins. 5c each. Department of Agriculture, Washington,
U.S.A.
COOKING AND SERVING
*Boston Cooking School Cook Book. Farmer, $2.00. McClelland, Goodchild &
Stewart, Ltd., Toronto.
*Diet in Disease. Pattee, $1.00. Whitcomb & Barrows, Boston.
Elements of the Theory and Practice of Cookery. Williams & Fisher. The
Macmillan Co. of Canada, Ltd., Toronto.
*Girls' Home Manual. Annie B. Juniper. British Columbia Government,
Victoria, B.C.
Practical Cooking and Serving. Hill, $1.50. McClelland, Goodchild &
Stewart, Ltd., Toronto.
LAUNDRY WORK
The Art and Practice of Laundry Work. Rankin, 1s. 6d. Blackie & Son,
Limited, London, England.
The Expert Cleaner. Seaman, 75c. McClelland, Goodchild & Stewart, Ltd.,
Toronto.
*Bulletins on "The Laundry". 5c each. Department of Home Economics,
Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y.
HOME NURSING
Emergencies. Gulick, 40c. Ginn & Company, New York.
*Home Nursing. Harrison, $1.00. The Macmillan Co. of Canada, Ltd.,
Toronto.
Hints and Helps for Home Nursing and Hygiene. Cosgrave, 40c. St. John
Ambulance Assn., Toronto.
ECONOMICS
Home Problems from a New Standpoint. Hunt, $1.00. Whitcomb & Barrows,
Boston.
*Household Management. Terrill. American School of Home Economics,
Chicago, Ill.
*The New Housekeeping. Frederick, $1.00. Musson Book Co., Toronto.
MAGAZINES
Good Housekeeping Magazine. $2.00 per year. 119 West Fortieth St., New
York.
*The Journal of Home Economics. $3.00 per year. 525 West 120th St., New
York.
* * * * *
Transcriber's Notes:
Obvious punctuation errors repaired.
Page viii, "Wood" changed to "Wool" (of Wool Fibre)