| Description | Letter from Amelia Nyasa Laws, Valence, to her relatives, regarding more restful day; Mlle. Combe now out of danger; Dr. Hauraud gave her up but Dr. Lavoiepierre persisted even though the case was serious; she is chronically ill and careless of herself; Amelia told Mme. Soureillat that Mlle. Combe should not stay on, but Mme. Soureillat is convinced that when she falls ill she receives better care in the annexe than from her stepmother, who is Irish; however, Mlle. Combe has decided to go home for the winter, and Mme. Soureillat does not want a replacement as she and Amelia work so well together; Amelia has been offered Mlle. Combe's room for the winter - she prefers her garret, but when the mistral blows cold she might be glad of the change; there are few night emergencies in the garret for which she would be responsible as the only resident nurse; Mme. Soureillat is keen to develop Amelia's independence in nursing, and has allowed her to give injections to Mlle. Combe and make poultices; she has also been training her in the administrative side so that she can answer any questions from the 201; Amelia has earned 20 francs this week helping with an outside case of bronchitis, a M. Grenier who is an expert chemist in the district; she has handed the money over to the Annexe for the Christmas treat; she applied the ventouse to the patient who thought her an experienced nurse, not one who had only learned the technique a fortnight before; evacuation of some recovering patients to Marseilles and Montpellier; this means that some hospitals near the front are being evacuated in preparation for a big attack; the routine is that a telephone message comes from Lyon and a train is made ready to take the patients away, and the same evening trains arrive with the new patients; the hospitals at the front keep the patients for as short a time as possible; the major factor in deciding their fitness for removal is their temperature chart; at Connantre, one of the frontline hospitals, there are three tables in the operating theatre and operations never cease by day or night; the surgeon moves from table to table; 'what a butchery it is at such places!'; the places are too busy and stressful for a comfortable recovery; the hospital charwoman has to leave at 11 each morning as her gas only comes on at 11.30 and she has all the cooking to do; Miss Bennett is now at the Hôpital Général in the mornings and the Séminaire in the afternoons, and is to move to Mme. Delattre's when the Gatliffs return to Paris at the end of the month; Amelia has asked her to care for Hergaux, sent to the Séminaire; he has only a thumb and part of the index finger after a fusee explosion and has been sent for mécano treatment, which is inappropriate; another splinter has been removed from Liénart's thumb and his aunt, a nurse, is well pleased with the result; he was a student at the Sorbonne, studying law, but must do something else now; he is 'one of the rare gentlemen one comes across, very correct, reserved, nice-looking'; all her other patients are to go to the petites formations, where they will receive no further massage; Dr. Lavoiepierre is annoyed with Dr. Jacquin who has been throwing his weight around; more new patients are expected shortly. |