Georgia State celebrates the history of nursing

This is a landmark year for nurses in Georgia. The Georgia Nurses Association will celebrate its 100th anniversary during its 2007 biennial convention in Savannah Aug. 31 to Sept. 1.

Georgia State University's Special Collections Department and Archives is honoring nurses with an exhibit titled "Angels of Mercy: A History of the Nursing Profession." On display through March, 2008, the exhibit features nursing records and artifacts from the Georgia Nurses Association, the National Conclave of Grady Graduate Nurses, other state nursing associations and private collections.

The Georgia State library is the largest repository of nursing collections in the Southeast, housing the records of the nurses associations in Georgia, South Carolina, Kentucky, Maryland and the District of Columbia.

"We have been preserving and making the records accessible through an $82,000 grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission," said Morna Gerrard, archivist for women's collections at Georgia State. "We do a different exhibit from our collections every year, and this seemed like a really good time to honor nursing."

"The timing of the release of this collection is impeccable," said Linda Easterly, GNA president. "As we move boldly into the future, we stand firmly on the foundations laid by our past leaders. It is certain that, without the dedication of the brave young women who founded GNA, nursing would not be as advanced a profession as it is today."

In 1907, 35 nurses chartered the Georgia State Association of Graduate Nurses (later shortened to Georgia Nurses Association) to "procure state registration, to elevate and maintain the standard of nursing, to protect the public, and to promote good fellowship among all nurses."

They adopted a registration bill, which created the Board of Nurse Examiners, the members of which were nominated by the GNA, were appointed by the governor and had the power to examine and register nurses.

The Medical Association of Georgia lobbied against the bill and introduced amendments to keep doctors in control of the board, but nurses got the bill passed in the Georgia General Assembly without major revisions. The exhibit at Georgia State features the original petition for registration, along with other historical records, photos of nurses at work and play, a selection of nursing caps and nursing school pins from the last 100 years.

"I think the nurses' emphasis on professionalism is the most striking thing about this collection," Gerrard said. "It was a struggle for them not to be perceived as handmaidens of doctors but to be recognized publicly as professionals.

"You can tell that they took it very seriously. From the beginning, the group was very structured and democratic, and as the GNA grew, its organization changed and became more complex."

Gerrard was interested to see how nurses were involved in historical events of the last century.

The records show the GNA's involvement in recruiting and organizing nurses for civilian and military duty during World War I and World War II. Many members were active in the American Red Cross, including Jane van de Vrede, who was director of the Southern Division of the organization during and immediately after World War I.

Evidence that segregation extended to nursing is demonstrated by the different caps that black and white nurses wore at Grady Memorial Hospital. Records also show that many GNA members worked for desegregation and that black nurses started joining the organization in the late 1960s.

Today, the association is even more politically active, with its own political action committee that lobbies legislators about issues that affect nurses and the health of Georgians.

"I have always had such respect for nurses, who are both highly qualified and incredibly kind, and that respect is even greater now," Gerrard said.

IF YOU GO

What: "Angels of Mercy: A History of the Nursing Profession," an exhibit honoring the last 100 years of nursing in Georgia.

When: Through March 2008.

Where: Eighth floor of the Georgia State University Library.

Cost: Free.

Special event: The 2007 Diane L. Fowlkes Spring Event will be June 12 from 5 to 7 p.m. in the Georgia State University Student Center's Senate Salon. The speaker will be Elizabeth Norman, author of "Band of Angels: The Untold Story of American Nurses Trapped on Bataan by the Japanese" and "Woman at War: The Story of Fifty Military Nurses Who Served in Vietnam." For information and to RSVP before the June 4 deadline, call 404-651-2477 or e-mail mgerrard@gsu.edu.