In the Company of Nurses: The History of the British Army Nursing Service in the Great War - Hardcover

Yvonne McEwen

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0748679111 ISBN 13: 9780748679119

Publisher: Edinburgh University Press, 2014

Synopsis

This is the authorised history of the British Army Nursing Service in the Great War. Constructed from unpublished official and unofficial documents, letters and diaries of the time, this important volume tells the much-neglected story of the Queen Alexandra's Imperial Military Nursing Service (QAIMNS) during the First World War. Yvonne McEwen's ground-breaking original research moves away from the long-held, uncritical, and overly-romanticised views of First World War nursing and addresses the professional, personal and political consequences that arose for nurses in the pivotal years from 1914 to 1918. This centenary volume is a vital contribution to the historiography of British military care-giving throughout this period and to the history of the Great War more generally. It examines the complexities of care-giving and professional development. It highlights the political controversies over inadequate casualty care arrangements. It addresses the relationship between trained and volunteers nurses. It discusses the physical and psychological health of nurses on active service. It lists the deaths within the ranks of nursing services. It cites Military Honours awarded to nurses.

About this title

About the Author

Yvonne McEwen is Honorary Fellow at The Centre for The Study of The Two World Wars, The University of Edinburgh. For 25 years, she worked as a nurse and trauma practitioner in the fields of international disaster relief and trauma care.

From the Back Cover

'Based on impeccable research, Yvonne McEwen's marvellous book contains an engrossing human story covering individual achievement, professional differences and medical advances, as well as the remarkable way in which the nursing services as a whole rose to the staggering and unprecedented challenges of the Great War.' Keith Jeffery, Professor of British History, Queen's University Belfast The untold story of the British Army Nursing Service during the Great War Constructed from unpublished official and unofficial documents, letters and diaries of the time, this important volume tells the much-neglected story of the Queen Alexandra's Imperial Military Nursing Service (QAIMNS) during the First World War. Yvonne McEwen's ground-breaking original research moves away from the long-held, uncritical and overly romanticised views of First World War nursing and addresses the professional, personal and political consequences that arose for nurses in the pivotal years from 1914 to 1918. This centenary volume is a vital contribution to the historiography of British military care-giving throughout this period and to the history of the Great War more generally. Key Features - Examines the complexities of care-giving and professional development - Highlights the political controversies over inadequate casualty care arrangements - Addresses the relationship between trained and volunteer nurses - Discusses the physical and psychological health of nurses on active service - Lists the deaths within the ranks of nursing services - Cites military honours awarded to nurses Yvonne McEwen is Project Director of Scotland's War 1914-1919 at the Centre for the Study of Modern Conflict, University of Edinburgh. She is the author of It's a Long Way to Tipperary: British and Irish Nurses in the Great War (2006) and co-editor of War, Journalism and History: War Correspondents in the Two World Wars (2012).

Edition details

• Publisher: Edinburgh University Press
• Publication date: 2014
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0748679111
• ISBN 13: 9780748679119
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 240