THE Bega District Hospital, built with a lot of community help, was opened in 1899. All seemed to be going well until 1900.
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ELLEN Clarke had been matron for 10 years when a trained nurse, Nurse Rutter from Sydney, was appointed to the hospital in August 1899. This move was so badly handled by the hospital committee that a few months later the Bega Gazette and at least two district papers were reporting on the ructions caused by Nurse Rutter's appointment, with tales of conspiracy, incompetence, drunkenness and ignorance, resulting in both Nurse Rutter and Matron Clarke being dismissed from the hospital. After a month at the hospital Nurse Rutter was questioned by the board's sub-committee behind the back of the matron, as reported in the Bega Gazette:
"Whatever the nurse said, right or wrong, no chances were given to the rest of the staff to confirm or contradict. The nurse was engaged to 'act under the matron', and we find doctor's orders are to go direct to the nurse."
The paper criticised the committee and the hospital board for bad management in allowing the institution to have two heads, two bosses, a condition of management that can only provoke disorder.
"The Bega public will never allow Mrs Clarke, who has given magnificent service for the last 11 years, to be sat upon. The matron shall have under her charge all linen, bedding, kitchen utensils etc, and that she shall report to the house committee when the stock needs replenishing. If anyone is allowed to interfere, how can the Matron be responsible?"
The Cobargo Chronicle of September 29 weighed in on the dispute:
"There may have been ructions at the Bega Hospital before the trained nurse arrived, but we never heard of them. Contemporaneously with the resignation of Mr Braine (editor of the Bega Gazette), from the committee and the advent of Nurse Rutter, we have had periodical reports of it in the Gazette of disagreement between the matron, the nurse and the kitchen maid with occasional accusations against the committee of holding secret inquiries into the conduct of the matron behind the back of the individual.
"In looking over the names of the committee, we find they are all well-known, level-headed and reputable men, who can be thoroughly relied upon to do their duty by the hospital in an honest and upright manner, and we are certainly loath to think, as suggested by the Gazette, that they were doing anything so inconsistent with fair dealings as to try an employee on the institution behind the accused's back."
