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Profiles In NursingSarah Edmonds Seelye a.k.a. Frank Thompson (1841–1898)A master of disguise, this Civil War nurse went undercover as a Union spyAlthough during the Civil War it was possible to pay someone else to serve for you in the Army, some people — including about 400 women — used subterfuge and even disguises to enter military service. One of those adventuresome women was Sarah Edmonds...
FeatureWartime Nursing PostersHow depictions of nurses shaped public sentiment towards warPosters have punch. They have color. And, where they depict nurses and nursing, they provide an important historical record of the many changes that have taken place since Florence Nightingale first tried to bring respectability to a once disreputable...
Feature250 Years of Black Nursing HistoryThe legacy of nurses who changed the nationDespite centuries of slavery, segregation, systemic inequality, and prejudice — including being denied entry into nursing schools and organizations — Black nurses have made noteworthy contributions to our profession. In this article, we’re...

Nursing Education

Profiles In NursingLinda Richards (1841–1930), The First Graduate of America’s First Nursing SchoolAfter graduating from the inaugural class of America’s first professional nurse training program, Linda Richards made remarkable reforms to nursing education and practice: improving hospital lighting, creating the first charting system, and establishing...
Profiles In NursingNursing in the Wild WestThe true tales of Calamity Jane and Nellie CashmanIt may be difficult to believe today, but there was a time when nurses suffered a dubious reputation. While the nuns who founded nursing orders and hospitals were seen as ministering angels, lay nursing was seldom considered a respectable profession, and...
Profiles In NursingRose Hawthorne Lathrop (1851–1926), Cancer Nurse and Candidate for SainthoodOncology nurse and candidate for sainthoodThe youngest child of famed novelist Nathaniel Hawthorne, Rose Hawthorne Lathrop was born into a wealthy New England family with literary and political connections. A series of tragedies led her to relinquish the comforts of privilege to become an...

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Profiles In NursingMary Seacole (1805–1881), Crimean War MemoiristHer bestselling book inspired the British public and Royal FamilyA multiracial lay nurse and businesswoman from Kingston, Jamaica, Mary Seacole created a life for herself that defied the stereotypes of her time and built a memorable legacy on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. Growing up in Jamaica Born Mary Grant...
Movie & TV NursesThe Time-Traveling Adventures of “Outlander”The nurse heroine is transported from World War II to 1743 (and back again)Other than the occasional period piece, TV shows featuring nurse characters tend to be set firmly in the here and now. Not so with “Outlander,” the popular STARZ series based on the historical fantasy-adventure novels by Diana Gabaldon, which takes...
FeatureFrom Clodhoppers to ClogsThe colorful history of nursing shoesA typical 12-hour shift keeps nurses on their feet. On average, nurses take more than 9,000 steps a day while contending with hazards like slippery hospital floors, unidentified fluid spills and who knows what kind of germs. It’s no wonder that...
Profiles In NursingDolores “Dee” O’Hara (1935–), First NASA Space NurseHer nursing skills launched an out-of-this-world careerWhen Dolores “Dee” O’Hara entered nursing school after graduating from Oregon’s Lebanon High School in 1953, she had no idea her nursing career would have her literally reaching for the stars. In 1960, she became the first nurse to join NASA,...

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