| Dr. Stuart Wildman, Editor | The UKAHN Bulletin |
| Volume 7 (1) 2019 | |
This edition is late, and I apologise for the delay. We have been experimenting with a new format for the Bulletin which has taken up quite a bit of time. From the next edition onwards it will be published in an online form which will make dissemination and searching much easier for all concerned. In this matter I would like to thank Keiron Spires for his enthusiasm, skill and drive to ensure that the next phase is successful. Meanwhile, this edition is published in its usual format and the committee is indebted, as ever, to Carolyn Gibbon our production editor. In 2018 we celebrated the centenary ofwomen obtainingthe vote and remembered those who had led the fight for female suffrage. Although the work of women in the First World War was cited as an important factor in changing the law, the majority of professional and volunteer nurses who contributed to the care of the wounded both at home and abroad, did not qualify to vote. They, like most women and some working-class men would have to wait until 1928 for universal suffrage. We salute the efforts of working women who campaigned for the vote, such as the radical Molly Murphy whose biography is published in this Bulletin.
November 2018 marked the centenary of the end of World War One, and again war and conflict dominate this edition with papers aboutthe Crimean War, the 1914-18 conflict, The Spanish Civil War and World War Two. Wherever there is strife nurses can be found stepping up to the mark to help servicemen and civilians alike. This will be the theme of our up coming Colloquium in Cirencester in July (see our website for details).
However, there is so much more nursing history here, as we have papers on nursing in India and on the midwife of Ravensbruek which bring international perspectives to our readers; on the pre-Nightingale nurses at the Chelsea Hospital, London and on mental health care in mother and baby units. I am pleased to say that this edition also features the first winning entry to our essay competition. Iain Hutchison’s excellent essay on the experience of paediatric nurses in Glasgow is a worthy winner. I do hope that you will consider submitting an essay or encouraging others to do so in the future. This year, marks 100 years since the Nurses Registration Act which followed a thirty year campaign for state recognition and the standardisation of training and professional discipline. We welcome contributions on this or any other subject in the future. Submissions can be made directly to bulletin@ukahn.org.
Finally we remember our colleague Dr. Sylvelyn Hähner-Rombach who died on the 6th January 2019, in Germany. Sylvelyn did much to bring together nurse historians across Europe and the world, including the United Kingdom. In these times of uncertainty we should honour her memory in building bridges to enable the shared history of nursing across different national boundaries and cultures. I do hope you enjoy reading this edition of the Bulletin.
