[Music] [The Bureau of Tuberculosis Control, Department of Health, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, presents] [Music [T.B. Nurse Wallace, Copyright 1952, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania] [Produced by Motion Picture and Recording Studio, The Pennsylvania State College] [Music] [Nurse Wallace:] I'm the new nurse. [Music] [Narrator:] And that's the way it starts. Those four words, "I'm your new nurse," are your passport to a new world. Come in. You are welcome. I think I know how you feel. Not so long ago, I stood here, spoke the same words, had the same feeling. I know your story. You see, it's mine too. As a small girl with a Raggedy Ann for a patient, you dreamed of being a nurse. Later, when your folks agreed to let you go into training, the dream started to be real. And all through training, you kept your eyes set on this day. Soon after they handed you your diploma, you made a decision. Convincing your parents that it was the right thing to do wasn't easy. They weren't too happy about it at first. "There were so many nicer jobs," they said. But your brother, Joe, he kind of understood. And Uncle Harry, the doctor, he was on your side. And that helped. So you've come to work in a tuberculosis sanatorium. This is the day when the dream becomes real. And I know how you feel. Do you have any idea how we feel about your arrival? Here's a clue. Notice how people's eyes light up when you say, "I'm the new nurse." Tomorrow when they take you on the big tour, you'll begin to catch on. Tomorrow will be a big day. For a moment, you'll wonder where you are. And then suddenly you'll remember. A new cap is a small thing to everybody but a new nurse on her first job. [Woman 1:] Good morning, Miss Wallace. [Nurse Wallace:] Good morning. [Music] [Narrator:] You are welcome. Do you feel it? That's what everyone here is trying to tell you. Wherever you go, you'll notice that people seem very glad to see you. Some won't speak it, but they'll be saying it just the same. Even the little children. Everyone seems to be reaching out, toward you. You don't want to get too close because you can't say it, but today is a day for looking. Take a look. Take a look at what men build for the good of their fellow men. You're going to be a part of all this, Wallace. This is where you belong. Take a deep breath and remember it. Tomorrow you begin to work. And in a month of tomorrows, you'll begin to find out what a tuberculosis sanatorium is. It's washing your hands more times in one day than you can count. It's as many "good mornings" every morning as there are patients in your ward. [Music] It's a hundred new things learned every day as you watch the work of other nurses. [Music] In time, you develop certain skills. You get good at handling certain things. But your hands don't seem to work so well when you're around a patient. This isn't just an accident. It goes deeper than that. You want to be able to work that way, but something always stops you. You keep trying. You keep failing. Why? Why are you so awkward and clumsy with patients? The minute you get close to them, something happens to you, inside. What are you afraid of, Wallace? [Buzzer sounds several times] It's an emergency. [Music] Hemorrhage. [Dramatic music] Fix an emergency hypo. Quickly! I have to clear his throat so he can breathe. [Dramatic music] Everything's under control. That's an important word, Wallace. Control. Oh, I know what you're thinking. Someday soon I'll tell you how scared I was the first time something like this happened to me. I was scared of the same thing you're scared of and I wouldn't admit it, even to myself, for a long time. The fear of catching tuberculosis paralyzed me, just like it did you a little while ago. I won my battle with an idea. Here in this sanatorium, we work to control tuberculosis. And if we can control it, then we don't have to be afraid of it. In the meantime, there's work to do. Thursdays are pneumo days. Tuesdays are operating days. Days slip into weeks, and in your ward things are going smoothly. Wallace is in control here. It's a big day for Charlie Stone. He's being transferred over to camp today. That means he's well on the way to recovery. It's a victory for both of you and you shake on it. Charlie's bed doesn't stay empty long. A new folder means a new patient is taking his place. [Music] [Nurse Wallace:] Hello, Ed. I'm Miss Wallace. Welcome to our ward. [Music] [Narrator:] A whole week goes by and the new patient hasn't spoken a word. [Music] [Doctor Sanderson:] I want to see you in your office, Miss Wallace. Let's move him into a sick room. He shouldn't be in the ward as long as he keeps this up. You've got to get him to cooperate, Wallace. The first thing is to get him to talk. Make him talk. [Nurse Wallace:] Here's another letter for you, Ed. Don't you want to read it? [Music] Do you like the book I brought for you, Ed? Have you been reading it? [Music] [Narrator:] You're ready to give up. You're thinking that there's nothing else you can do, you've tried everything. But the good doctor doesn't believe it. He doesn't believe you're a failure like you tell him you are. What was it Dr. Sanderson said? [Dr. Sanderson:] If you give up now, Wallace, he hasn't got a chance. [Narrator:] You're going to find a way. You're determined to find a way. You talk to Ed every day, day after day. [Music] Gradually he begins to accept you, in little ways. You ask a hundred questions, hoping he will answer one of them. He must answer. [Nurse Wallace:] Don't you want to get well? Don't you want to get out of here? Why don't you fight to get well? Don't you want to get well? Why don't you act like a man and fight back? What are you going to do when you get out of here? What are you going to do when you get out here? When you get out of here? When you get out of here? What are you going to do? What are going to do? What are you going to do? [Ed:] Why don't you get out of here and leave me alone! [Narrator:] That's it. That's the beginning. From now on, it's easy. He's got a long way to go. But he's on the way. And in a different sort of way, you're on the way, too. [Music] Your idea is that you should look into some of the other aspects of sanatorium nursing. And the Director of Nurses thinks it's a good idea. She suggests a transfer to the operating room. At one time when you were in training, you seriously considered making this your specialty. And in the course of your work here, you discover something you hadn't thought of before. The citizens of this community, which is the sanatorium, have the same surgical needs as the citizens of any small town. On any one operating day, you are likely to find yourself assisting in a long, complicated thoracoplasty one hour and an emergency appendectomy the next. [Music] And little boys everywhere, even in a sanatorium, occasionally have to have their tonsils removed. You find your next move from the operating room to postoperative nursing, an easy and natural step to make. And you discover that nursing involves teaching, too. This inquisitive young lady wants to know how her operation, which involved the removal of two of her ribs, is going to help arrest her tuberculosis. And so you find yourself explaining the importance of rest and how various operations, including the one she had, immobilize the lungs and give them a chance to heal. The teaching role is particularly important when you start to work with the children. [Music] This isn't just an ordinary scolding for having dirty little hands. This is an opportunity to explain and set early in their lives good health habits. Your horizons as a nurse continue to expand. You'll begin to understand the needs of the children and their dependence on you. [Music] And this leads you to a deeper understanding of the problems of the adult with tuberculosis. You begin to understand how much these people need you. Even in the last stages of their cure, when they finally reach camp, they need you more than ever. When they first came here, they were utterly dependent. They had to be even when they didn't want to be. That's one of the factors in a successful cure. Ed must now be taught how to do things for himself again and how to protect himself while doing them. [Music] You explain how they must all adapt and control their everyday actions, so that when they leave here, they will never have to come back. You are a teacher... and always a pupil. You never stop learning. You never stand still. You're on the move. And one day, you come back to Ward D. It's like coming back home. This is where it all started. Most of the faces are different. And you feel different, too. You feel sure this is where you belong. The difference is that now you know some of the answers. Know them well enough to be able to help the new nurse on your floor get started on her first year. [Music] [Buzzer] [Music] Even more important is the sure knowledge that you are capable of finding new answers for new problems. [Ed:] Hey, Miss Wallace. I've come to say goodbye. [Narrator:] In a tuberculosis sanatorium, "goodbye" is a happy word. Goodbye is a reward. And going home is like a song. Something of you, Nurse Wallace, goes home with everyone. [Music] Goodbyes are important, but there's work to do, Nurse Wallace. TB Nurse Wallace. [The End]