The original caption may contain language which is historic and which may no longer be considered appropriate. It has been retained in the record in the interest of historical accuracy.
The caption on the reverse of the photograph reads: “Navla (sic) nursing sisters train sick berth attendants. Picture shows a Navla (sic) Nursing Sister lecturing to student sick berth attendants on the structure and use of the B.L.B. oxygen mask.”
A Sick Berth Attendant, known as a Medical Assistant since 1965, is responsible for providing day-to-day healthcare and patient care on naval ships and in naval hospitals. The Sick Berth branch of the Royal Navy was formed when a naval rating of “Sick Berth Attendant” was established in the 1830s. Attendants did not receive any training until the 1880s. During the Second World War, able-bodied men who joined the Royal Navy may have been more likely to be sent to sea; those who worked as Sick Berth Attendants “were often those who had some physical defect or were old or illiterate”. As a result, standards of nursing were sometimes poor; many of these men had failed their training examinations. During peacetime, the pass mark in examinations was 80% but during the Second World War this may have been reduced to 66%, with training being condensed into 10 weeks. A B.L.B. mask, described in 1938 by Boothby, Lovelace, and Bulbulian, allowed the administration of oxygen in concentrations ranging from that in air to pure oxygen using a mechanically simple and easy to operate device. The mask had a combined inspiratory and expiratory valve, and a bag for rebreathing. In addition, the mask was more comfortable and allowed patients to eat and speak whilst wearing it. It was worn by pilots on commercial American airlines, and is now used in the delivery of oxygen at high altitudes, having been replaced in medical uses by more effective masks which, for example, eliminated or reduced rebreathing. See also MED01/01/3068-3072 and MED01/01/3074-3081. High-resolution copies of this image are available for free for non-commercial use. Please Enquire to place an order.
This is part of the Series: MED01/01 Series of prints; within the Collection: MED01 Topical Press Agency Medical Collection
Source: Historic England Archive
Photographer: Topical Press Agency Limited
Photographer: Harrison, Norman Kingsley
Royal Naval Hospital, Classroom, Education, Women's History, Health And Welfare
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