Newark City Hospital School of Nursing Student Records, A Register of the
Creator
Dates
- 1889-1966.
Introduction
The Newark City Hospital School of Nursing (NCHSN) Student Records is a single series within the Newark City Hospital record group (RG/K), which is also housed in the UMDNJ Libraries' Special Collections Department. Other School of Nursing record series include: Publications (RG/K-6-1), Photographs (RG/K-6-3), and Artifacts (RG/K-6-4). The records of the School of Nursing date from 1889-1966, and total 6.75 cubic feet (7.33 linear feet). The records are open for research without restrictions under the conditions of the Archives' access policy. The series was arranged and described as a result of a grant from the UMDNJ-NJMS Morris H. Saffron Endowment for the History of Medicine.
Extent
7.33 Linear Feet (7.33 linear ft)
Restrictions on Access
No restrictions on access, under the conditions of the Archives access policy.
Language of Materials
English
Biographical / Historical
Newark City Hospital, established in 1882 to care for the city's indigent sick, was first located in a wing of the Alms House on the corner of Elizabeth Avenue and Concord Street. In 1884, a wooden building on Fairmont Avenue, formerly the Essex County Hospital for the Insane, was purchased by the city for $500.00. This wooden building was replaced by a brick building in 1898. When Martland Hospital opened in 1958, Newark City Hospital was replaced; the building was eventually demolished.
The Newark City Hospital Nurses Training School was established in 1885, with the first class of students graduating in 1888. Mrs. P.B. Spicer was the first principal of the school. The two-year training program entailed a first year of practical training in the male medical and surgical, children's, and infectious wards. During the second year, nurses were placed in charge of a ward, trained in obstetrics, and served at the Newark Eye & Ear Infirmary, as well as being sent to private homes. Fees collected by the students for private nursing were turned over to the hospital treasury. Nursing students were required to work one of two shifts: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. or 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. Students were housed in temporary quarters at the corner of Orange Avenue and Bergen Streets until a residence connected to the hospital was built for the nursing students in 1899.
In 1905, the school was recognized by the New York State Board of Regents. In 1912, the school was approved by the New Jersey Board of Nursing. In 1914, a new five-story residence for student nurses was built on Fairmont Avenue, across the street from the hospital, providing accommodations for 140 nurses (52 single and 44 double rooms). The first floor consisted of a dining room, auditorium and reception hall, with study halls and recreation rooms located on the other floors. The Nurses' Residence was demolished in 1994.
In June 1926, a citywide system of prenatal clinics was established, with headquarters at Newark City Hospital. Student nurses participated in the program by providing instruction to expectant mothers. In 1929, the nurses' training course was expanded from a two-year to a three-year program.
In the 1940s, many Newark City Hospital nursing students took part in the government-sponsored Cadet Nurse Program, established to encourage women to enter the field of nursing. Students who were a part of the program were paid $20 per month for the first 2½ years of schooling, and $60 for their last six months. During the final six months of study, student nurses could choose to either stay in their own hospital or work in a government hospital.
In 1950, the student's day was reduced from a ten hour to an eight hour shift. In 1968, the hospital, along with the School of Nursing, was purchased from the City of Newark by the New Jersey College of Medicine & Dentistry, an antecedent of UMDNJ. The NCHSN closed in 1971.
Arrangement
Arranged alphabetically by student's surname.
Custodial History
The School of Nursing Student Records originated at the Newark City Hospital School of Nursing. The records were transferred to the Bergen University Archives by Eunice Tichnor, University Hospital-Office of Nursing Staff Development on November 11, 1991. The Office of Nursing Staff Development maintains responsibility for student records dating from about 1951 to the school's closure.
Scope and content
These records document each student's application process and enrollment in the NCHSN nurse training program. The bulk of the records date from the 1910s through the 1940s, with only about two percent before and after this time period. Document types include students' application forms, medical records, letters of recommendation, secondary school transcripts, student photographs, grades and evaluations for both coursework and practical training, accident reports, requests for transcripts, and correspondence and forms related to professional certification. 846 students are represented.
Student files are dated by the year of graduation, withdrawal from the program, or estimated date of enrollment. For the most part, the earliest records (pre-1920) contain only a one-page application, a certificate of health, a grade/rating card and some letters of recommendation. Greater documentation begins in the 1920s with more detailed course and practical work records and more comprehensive health records upon entry, including family health histories, vaccinations and weight charts. Beginning in the early 1940s, files include more complete cumulative health histories and detailed application forms. Student photographs are present in approximately one-third of the records, ranging across the years; files that contain photographs are marked as such in the container list.
Students' grade reports and evaluations include details of practical service in the medical, surgery, obstetrics, pediatrics, gynecology and dietary departments. Students were also rated for professional fitness and personality.
Student's medical records include a cumulative health history upon entry into the program, physical examination at entry, and any treatment received during enrollment. Records also include dental charts, weight charts, vaccinations, some x-rays and EKGs, nurse's notes during student hospital stays, correspondence regarding treatment for tuberculosis, and some psychiatric evaluations and IQ test results. Later application forms contain information regarding family histories, occupation, religion, nationality, student essays, hobbies, and personal habits such as smoking, coffee drinking, and exercise.
Many students of the 1940s participated in the Student Cadet Service; documentation of their participation is included in the files, although records primarily contain their personal grades and ratings in the program.
These records would be of interest to those conducting research in the areas of nursing history, history of women in the health sciences, women's health and women's history.
- Title
- Newark City Hospital School of Nursing Student Records, 1889-1966, A Register
- Author
- Arranged and described by Susan Chore
- Date
- 1996 June
Part of the RBHS Special Collections in the History of Medicine Repository