| Show AWE am moab N T 2 A 7 W A Z 4 W A x wl ir X left photograph of mrs J ernest schiller of philadelphia which won the international grand prize for the loveliest mother in the united states and canada in a contest conducted by the photographers association of america photograph courtesy of the photographers association of america center the aitho spirit of motherhood this composite madonna results from the features of paintings which range in date from 1293 to 1823 it was made by joseph gray kitchell Kl after 31 years of study right photograph of mrs blanche rusby of detroit which won the international grand prize in the tha contest mentioned above photograph courtesy of the photographers association of america by ELMO SCOTT WATSON AY 10 is the day this year vear 1 when america honors lla its mothers in acco accod dance with a resolution passed by congress con giess in 1014 designating i the second sunday in may as mothers day and asking the president to issue a proclamation calling upon government ouicla ls to display the flag upon public buildings president woodrow wilson issued such a proclamation asking his fellow 7 citizens to display flags altheir at their homes as a public expression express lon of our love and reverence lor for the mothers of our country since that time the day has been generally fiene rally observed throughout tbt united states and there has grown up the custom of sending to our mothers let letters telegrams flower and other gifts on that day as well vell as honoring them by wearing a white carnation it if ones mother jig Is dead aud a colored carnation it slie she Is still living all of which expresses a pretty sentiment and the origin and regular observance of mothers day in the united st states ates are facts in which americans take take considerable pride but to offset this pride in the pretty sentiment Is tin an ugly fact of which many americans are not aware and that fact Is that the mortality rate from maternity causes in we th e united states Is the highest in the civilized world and that of american mothers who die each year from childbirth causes teed need not die if they are given adequate maternity care I 1 do you doubt that sta statement temen t about tho the mortality rate among american mothers it if so look at these official figures compiled by the childrens bureau of the united states department of labor for 1027 the latest year for which figures for most of these countries were available in regard to tile the maternity death rates per 1000 live babies IL bles for the de following countries uruguay 22 italy 26 japan 28 the netherlands 21 2 0 finland 30 hungary SO 30 denmark 31 czechoslovakia 30 switzerland 37 spain 39 england and wales 41 esthonia Esth Est onla honta 41 irish froe free state 45 northern ireland 48 new zealand 49 Lithun lithuania uld 50 canada 56 5 6 chile 5 58 8 australia 59 salvador OS 03 scotland 04 united states 65 in the light of these statistics and the custom of wearing white carnations in honor of mothers who have died some one hits asked this very appropriate prop pro prInte question on does it not seem that white carnations one for each mother who needlessly die died I 1 in the last year its as a result of motherhood represent too great a toll in pain and sorrow to be paid tor for by sentiment alone however an answer to that question may be ba found in a movement which Is already under wa way y for this year the observance of mothers day marks the beginning of it a nationwide nation wide educational campaign to reduce the mortality rate among american mothers so that jj mchall all riot not die in vain each year this campaign has been started by mrs john sloane president of the maternity center association in tew new N york city and it has the ind endorsement indorsement Indor or of high government officials at a recent white house conference president hoover said when en mothers understand the standards of care they will demand protection sur geon general tl 11 S cumming Cu mining of the united states public health service sen ice in In dorsing the campaign as a new form of mothers rs day observance has declared the high maternal death rate Is a disgrace to our profession and I 1 am convinced that efforts such as these will go far toward improving condit conditions lons similarly grace giace abbott chief of at the childrens bureau stated there are no more tragic deaths than of mothers in childbirth and I 1 feel sure that if it were understood by the people of the united states that to a very large extent these deaths are preventable they would be prevented typhoid fever smallpox and diphtheria have yielded to scientific control in the last quarter century and tuberculosis has been reduced to half its toll as almost everyone knows but the death rate from causes connected with maternity has not been lowered at all during the period for which records are aie available italy denmark and five other nations have maternal death rates less than halt half that of the united states which as has been seen Is twenty sec ond end on the roster of the nations of the world in ninny many of these countries the results have been commonly achieved b by 3 legislation requiring obedience but in the united states improvement pro cannot be expected by such drastic action unless there Is popular opinion back of it we have refused to address ourselves effectively to this problem for at least twenty five years says sass dr ralph W lobenstine a noted obstetrician of new york city it we are to improve conditions we must face them not raaon rationalize alize the humiliating conclusion is that this n national disgrace can be removed when as a people we set out to remove it the idea of going to a physician at once states dr prank frank W lynch a leading obstetrician of san francisco may seem ridiculous to the ordinary woman she would not think so if she realized the value of taking things in time in nearly every hospital in the land it will be found that most tragedies occur in women who were pot under medical supervision during the period of the childs development perhaps the root of the difficulty states carolyn conant van It larcom in her book obstetrical nursing lies iles in the fact that childbirth as well as the attendant suffering and death are so familiar that they are regarded as being normal incidents in the ordinary course of affairs one of the most dramatic of all human events the birth of a new being Is accepted casually almost without con cern because it Is so frequent so commonplace moreover we are arc all accustomed to hearing bearing stressed the fact that childbearing Is not a disease but Is a normal physiological function not so generally however do we hear emphasis put upon the equally important fact that there Is extreme danger ot of infection while these physiological functions are in progress and that they must subject the entire organism to such a strain that there results a dangerously narrow margin between health and disease here heie Is the evidence that adequate maternity care saves mothers lives louis 1 I dublin ph D statistician ot of the metropolitan life insurance company and an expert internationally known examined the records ot of mothers cared for by the maternity center association over a period of six years in a certain section of new york city he compared the results with what happened to mothers in the same section of the city not receiving such care this showed that those in the first group have about three times as good a chance to survive as the others the result sars his report Is indicative dica tive of the saving of lives that might be accomplished were every mother to receive the benefit of adequate maternity care As more than women in the united states every year ear die from causes related to maternity this means that more than 10 deaths are preventable in addition of the babies who now die in the first month of life would be saved infants as well as mothers are protected by adequate maternity care there Is nothing peculiar to the civilization of the united states to ac count tor for tile fact that our maternal death rate Is more than twice that of sue such li countries as denmark and the netherlands where records are kept as carefully as they are here tills this count rys low position on the roster poster of nations of the world Is because there is a striking absence here of trained care tor for the great mass of women in moderate circumstances who have children we have allowed things to go on with indifference to the waste of lives of mothers and babies assuming that all was well when decidedly it was not the situation cries to high heaven for a remedy adequate maternity care Is tile the observation care and instruction by doctors and nurses of mothers from the time the woman thinks she sh e may in a y b ba 0 pregnant until she Is able to resume her regular activities and to care for her new baby according to hazel corbin general director of the maternity center association commenting on the work done by this organization which reduced tho the death rote rate among mothers to 22 per thousand live births as against 65 lu the country as a whole miss corbin adds nurses urge ach mother to register as early as possible with the private doctor or hospital physician who will deliver her so BO lie he may direct her care during pregnancy and know all about her when it conics comes time for the delivery and care ot of the baby fach bach mother Is helped to select from the facilities available what Is best suited to her condition the nurses working w bilth ith the doctors and reporting to them each time they see the rap miners visit each mother at regular intervals during pregnancy they help the doctor or midwife during delivery and make regular visits afterward and give or teach somo some responsible person to give the necessary care to mother and baby as aa well v ell as see that the household Is running smoothly so the mother can rest as long as necessary and gradually as the doctor advises resume her usual activities and increased responsibilities bili ties the aim of maternity care Is 13 to secure for every mother the minimum of mental and physical discomfort during pregnancy the maximum ot of mental and physical fitness when the baby compa comes the reward of a well baby and the knowledge to care for herself and baby 04 |
