The Wilmington Morning Star (August 22, 1944)
Editorial: More nurses
The war news has been so good in recent weeks that we at home are all too liable to overlook a part of the cost of victory which, so far as Europe is concerned, seems not so far ahead.
This does not apply, of course, to households which have been stricken, but only to the tens of thousands of other homes that have been spared. In these the steadily mounting casualty lists have little significance.
It is time for everybody to recognize the fact that with each day’s fighting on this tremendously accelerated scale the number of troops wounded is on the increase. Ultimate victory is levying a heavier price upon our fighting forces with every advance.
These men who are struck down in battle need the best of care if their lives are to be saved. The miracles of sulfa drugs and penicillin, the marvelous skill of our surgeons, alone cannot do this. Nursing still must be depended upon to complete the job. More and more nurses are needed at the front.
If they are to take up their burdens more women will have to take nurse training. It is said that 60,000 cadet nurses are needed immediately. As they complete their courses and are prepared to care for the sick at home nurses with greater skill and more rounded training may be released for the battlefronts.
The need is for large numbers of volunteers. Any girls or young woman with average schooling and in good physical condition is eligible. Surely Wilmington, which has done well in training nurses, aides and cadets will not fail in this increasing emergency. Inquiries addressed to Red Cross headquarters will bring all information promptly.