Home PageThe Fence on the Precipice
Child Welfare Nursing 1918-1930
Across Australia in the early years of the 20th century, politicians, social planners, doctors and philanthropists began to exress concern about the health of Australian children and, in particular, the numbers of babies dying needlessly. Their concern was part of an international reaction to the high infant mortality rates of the time.This is the story of the establishment of Child Welfare Nursing in Australia with the focus primarily on Tasmania. Imbued with a desire to save lives and aware of the national imperatives to increase the population, child welfare nurses set out to establish a service for babies and their mothers that would turn around the appalling infant morbidity and mortality statistics. They were a significant part of an infant welfare movement aiming to 'modernise' families for the good of the nation.
This history is underpinned by the author's experience as a child health nurse and research for a Master's thesis. Mostly, however, it has stemmed from her interest in uncovering the often overlooked past achievements of ordinary people. Child welfare nurses were ordinary workers - the foot soldiers in what was believed to be a battle against ignorance, disorder and dirt.
The Fence on the Precipice Reviews:
I have just spent several enjoyable hours reading the carefully documented Tasmanian history of Child Welfare Nursing (1918 to 1930). Child welfare nursing, or as it is now known in many states child and family health nursing, is a widely accepted and used service by Australian families.
The insider perspective Sheryl Brennan brings to her historical analysis is a feature that distinguishes this book from other histories of the Australian Child and Family Health movement. As part of the introduction Sheryl shares her experience of mothering her own child and the learning she gained from this experience as a child and family health nurse. Sheryl’s story clearly demonstrates the disjuncture between a mother’s experiences and the scientific approach to motherhood.
This book provides an insight into the often difficult lives of the pioneering Child Welfare Nurses as they worked to improve the health of infants, young children and mothers. The nurse’s focus on health promotion is important as it distinguishes this specialty from other nursing specialties. Of importance is the strong connection this health promotion focus makes with the current work of Child and Family Health Nurses.
Nurses can learn many lessons from Myrtle Searle the Launceston Child Welfare Nurse. Myrtle demonstrated a willingness to become an activist when it probably would have been easier to stay quiet and do her job. Her role as an activist included writing political letters and talking to the press about the conditions she encountered on entering the homes of victims of the 1919 influenza epidemic.
Contemporary Child and Family Health Nurses will gain a sense of pride from this story about our history and some of the very special women who were the pioneers of our nursing specialty. Many similarities will be identified by the reader between the child health and mothering practices of the beginning 20th century and the beginning years of the 21 st century. The recognition of the importance of the early years, concerns about the risk of a flu pandemic and the need to shift from a scientific view of parenting to a partnership approach for working with parents and their families remain contemporary themes for child and family health nurses.
Cathrine Fowler
Professor for the Tresillian Chair in Child and Family Health
Centre for Midwifery, Child and Family Health
University of Technology Sydney