During the Month of February of our 110th year, we continue our Healthcare Heroes through History blog post series with the 1920s.
By the 1920s, the Red Cross continued making important contributions to the health of veterans and civilians through their visiting nurse services after World War I and the Spanish Flu Epidemic. Horse and buggy transportation were being replaced by vehicles.
Looking back at Foster’s Daily Democrat articles from the 1920s, one particular visiting nurse, Miss Clementine Platt, is mentioned with high praise, only having served as a visiting nurse in Rochester for more than a year.
Clementine Platt, Visiting Nurse
According to a Foster’s Daily Democrat news article on February 3, 1920, “The regular monthly meeting of the executive committee of the Visiting Nurse association, the first of the fiscal year, was held yesterday afternoon in the rooms of the Visiting Nurse at City Hall and was well attended. Only routine business came up for transaction other than the idea of securing an auto for the use of the visiting nurse. This matter will be more officially reported upon at the next regular meeting. The report of the Visiting Nurse, Miss Clementine Platt, was a follows. Medical cases 19; surgical 2; obstetrical 6; total 27; nursing visits 182; school visits 2; total 186. Total collected from all sources $17.00.”
In August of 1920, Miss Platt moved to Kentucky to work with the Red Cross. According to the July 29, 1920 Foster’s Daily Democrat news article, “Miss Platt has done most excellent work here, devoting much time and effort and was always willing to answer calls. Within the past year the work has greatly increased. There has been more calls to the outer sections of the city than there has been. The examination of the school children to say nothing of the number of clinics that have been helped here in which she has assisted. The fact that she has been able to do this big work has made possible by the association procuring a runabout which has been of a material assistance.”
The article continues to report that the Red Cross had sent several “crippled” children to hospitals in Manchester and Concord to correct infantile paralysis. “The operations and treatments both here and in Manchester and Concord have been financed by the local Red Cross Chapter and automobiles have been furnished to take the children to and from the hospitals. All the cases which have been treated have been found and recommended for attention as a result of the medial inspection of the schools in which Dr. Annis and Miss Platt have collaborated. Much credit is due them for the way they have conducted this very important work of school medial inspection and Rochester is sorry to lose Miss Platt, who has served as Visiting Nurse with such marked efficiency.”Unfortunately we do not have a photo of Miss Pratt – standing in as an illustration we used the photo above from the Red Cross, Bridgeton, MA