Ordered to care

Ordered to careChapter 6Nursing as work: divisions in the occupationBy Corrina JohnsonDiversity continuedDiversity continued after nursing students received their diplomasTurn of the centuryHospitals grew in number and size

Some graduates were lucky to find work in a nursing school or in a small hospital

Diversity ContinuedMost graduates found work in a private duty homeIt was exhausting workWork approximately a maximum of 10 yearsNurses didnt have a monopoly on the private duty.Chronic patients needed companions- family likely to hire non-trained nurses.Income of the family determined what type of nurse was hired.

Nursing IncomeFrom 1880s 1890sNew Graduates $15.00-$18.00 in BostonPer weekBy late 1890sNurses commanded$20.00-$25.00Per week

Nursing vs. ServantsClash between nursing and servant-like dutiesAlways afraid of being asked to do too muchNurses wanted to be treated like ladiesThey wanted to be served dinner at the table with the family instead of the kitchen with the servantsDetrimental to their careerFine line between knowing the rules of the familyNursing Known as overbearing, or dictatorial Left families with no choice but to hire either un-trained nurses or obtain an expensive private room in a hospitalDifficulties Looking for workNew graduates looked for workNurses worked under the physicianNurses worked in patients homes or small hospitalsUntrained nurses were considered a threat Required less incomeWere not looking for superiority from the servants

Private duty vs. HospitalPrivate duty Lack of supervisionPoor technique can be hidden for yearsPatient and family is the center of nursing attentionShifts of 12-24 hours were the norm84-164 hours a weekAverage case lasted about 4 weeksA nurse leader summarized the effects of the work on the nurseIts irregularity breaks down her health, its seclusions tend to narrow her interests. She cannot charge in accordance with any particular skill she had acquired; she is unethical if, after ten years of hard work, she charges any more than does the newest graduate in the field. Yet she must be all thinks to all people, she must remain human though she cannot live like most humans.

Private duty vs. hospitalHospital baseHead nurse or supervisorExperience and skillTask orientedLonger life span

Nursing presence in Hospital administrationOver the years, the presence of nursing increased

Hospitals 100 bedsContinued to be run by Male doctors and other trained men.Life table and ChoicesAge affected career opportunitiesAverage professional nurse was expected to be youngThe Physicians journal American Medicine editorialized that nursing required the young and vigorous, who can bend to the strains and not breakAverage age of professional nurse between 1880 and 1914 was 28, with a mode of 25Average age of the untrained nurse was an average of 35, with a mode of 40.Marriage Marriage meant dropping out of the work forceMost never marriedBy 1920, increasing number of married women, stayed in nursing or returned to nursing1 in 5 working nurses were married.Divided homeAs womans laborNursing demanded self-sacrifice As an occupational groupDivided into numerous different practice fieldsProvided woman with a skill to practice for a lifetime until marriageChance to move up the ladderComfortFreedomSense of independenceSelf-worthThese positions and subsequent divisions shaped the politics of nursing reform