Nursing

The postcard is a fleeting and widespread art form influenced by popular ideas about social and cultural life in addition to fashions in visual style. Nurses and nursing have been the frequent subjects of postcards for over one hundred years. In fact, no other art form has illustrated the nursing profession so profusely using such a variety of artistic styles and images.

These images of nurses and nursing are informed by cultural values; ideas about women, men, and work; and by attitudes toward class, race, and national differences. By documenting the relationship of nursing to significant forces in 20th-century life, such as war and disease, these postcards reveal how nursing was seen during those times.

Pictures of Nursing investigates the hold these images exert on the public imagination—then and now.

“during her evening ward rounds, the famous nurse talks about the lack of medical knowledge in the Crimean field hospital in which she's working. She describes the risk of infection to the patients, and her hopes for developing modern nursing methods that might save more lives in the future.”

“This film also deals with certain themes that are important to nurses everywhere in the world, gender roles, war, discrimination, and labour struggle. Also pay attention to the complex relationship between medicine and nursing. The Rise of the Training Schools.”

The American Association for the History of Nursing (AAHN) is a professional organization open to everyone interested in the history of nursing.

The Museum of Nursing History, Inc. is committed to the preservation and exhibition of historical nursing memorabilia and to the education of the nursing community as well as the general public about nursing’s past.

The Barbara Bates Center is the preeminent history of nursing research center and archive.

Our priority is to increase the understanding of the importance of the history of nursing and healthcare to the development of our healthcare system and in crafting effective health policies and patient care strategies.

Nursing in New Zealand has a long and illustrious history. There are many fascinating stories and experiences that have been captured over the years through a variety of projects and research completed by academics, nurses and families. The aim of this website is to capture this rich history and create a resource that nurses, students, academics and family members can access in order to gain a better understanding of nursing history in New Zealand.