104 years ago, a society for the promotion of health among women and children – known today as Plunket – was formed (14 May 1907)
In May 1907, Dr Truby King (above), the director of the Seacliff Lunatic Asylum near Dunedin, addressed a large gathering of women in the town hall. His topic was ‘The Promotion of Health Among Women and Children’. At the end of the meeting, a voluntary society dedicated to this goal was formed.
One of the society’s aims was ‘to stimulate interest and to raise the standard of knowledge and thought among women on all matters affecting the health of themselves and their children’. It began at a time when there were concerns about low birth rates amongst Pakeha and the rate of infant mortality. These concerns were reflected in the society’s motto: ‘to help the mothers and save the babies’.
Truby King advocated a more scientific approach to childcare. As part of this philosophy he promoted breastfeeding; he considered breast milk ‘perfect food – the baby’s birthright’. For those babies who could not be fed this way, King developed a formula to add to cow’s milk. In King’s words, ‘Every infant who cannot be suckled in the natural way is entitled to receive properly modified milk’. His formula ‘humanised’ cow’s milk and brought its composition closer to that of mother’s milk. The apparatus pictured below was used to modify or ‘humanise’ milk.
Dedicated Plunket and Karitane nurses were trained to carry out the society’s work in the community. Providing advice for mothers and measuring and weighing babies (see Plunket room scales below) in order to chart their development, have always been important components of Plunket nurses’ work.
In 1908, the society gained an important patroness: Lady Victoria Plunket, the wife of the Governor General. Lady Plunket was a mother of eight and two of her sisters were involved in nursing in Britain. She promoted the society around the country, as well as a special pram (below) which allowed air to circulate around babies. Fresh and sunshine were considered essential for healthy babies.
Today, Plunket still provides support for parents and babies, its philosophies evolving over the 100 plus years that it has been operating. Most New Zealanders will have a Plunket book tucked away somewhere as evidence of their pre-school milestones.
Read a biography of Truby King and Lady Plunket: Melanie Oppenheimer ‘“Hidden under many bushels”: Lady Victoria Plunket and the New Zealand Society for the Health of Women and Children’, New Zealand Journal of History, vol.39, no.1 April 2005, pp. 22-38.