A Tribute to the TCH Nursing School Graduates
When the Mennonite Christian Hospital was starred in Hualien ,we had no graduate nurses. We had seven aboriginal teenagers who had had three months of first aid/nurse aide training, and one nurse who was not a graduate. Nevertheless, because of the need, we began inpatient care, including major surgery. Obviously I had to keep a close eye on the nursing care. I was very happy when Margareth Peters, a nurse from Canada, was added to our staff during the year, and we were able to hire two Taiwanese registered nurse. At that time, nursing was not a popular profession in Taiwan because during the Japanese occupation of the island, the Japanese men took advantage of nurse. So we needed to train our own.
Since we were working entirely with aborigines, we first of all gave our nurse aids further training. Then we started a three-year nursing school for aboriginal students. Later we accepted Taiwanese students as well. After a few years we changed to a four-year program. Much of the success of the hospital is due to the nurses from Canada and the United States, especially Miss Susan Martens and Miss Helen Willms, who served at the hospital and taught in the nursing school. They taught concepts of Christian nursing in the classroom and on the wards. The students, even those who were not Christian, learned these concepts and generally applied them in their nursing care. They provided much better nursing care than was common in Taiwan hospital at the time. Most of them had learned to be concerned about a patient’s emotional and spiritual needs as well as their physical needs. Beside nursing , emphasized in their training, was not a common practice in Taiwan. When we did hire outside nurses, it was evident that some of this attitude and orientation was lacking.
Consequently, MCH developed a reputation for its good nursing care. As far as I was concerned, it was a tragedy when we had to close our school. Our MCH Nursing School graduates; including those sent to MacKay Nursing School in later years, provided exemplary service and witness in their patient care, demonstrating the hospital motto, “Service in the Name of Christ.”
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