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Developing a Thematic Collection
by Lorraine Mychajlunow
 Nursing in Canada has been referred to as the "hen's
teeth" of medical history because nurses and health care
workers have left behind little evidence of their practice. With so
little source material to work with, the identification of
historical resources is very
important. The Alberta Association of Registered Nurses (AARN) is
the professional/registering body for approximately 23,000 nurses.
Work on its museum and archives was started in 1978 by a group of
volunteer retired nurses. With 10 schools of nursing in Alberta
closing in the 1970s, they were concerned that the records of these
schools would disappear unless a concerted effort to save them was
undertaken. A grant for senior citizens allowed them to
systematically collect caps, pins, yearbooks, diplomas and other
memorabilia, resulting in a substantial collection of materials that
was presented to the AARN in 1981. A staff member then assumed
responsibility for the collection and, during the next 10 years, the
mandate was broadened to include records of the Association itself,
photos and memorabilia of past presidents and honorary members and
other items such as books.
 When a professional archivist began working with the nursing
association in 1991, records and artifacts were squirreled away in
various closets around the building. A vault contained original
minute books and registration records from 1916, position
statements, briefs to government, newsletters and other materials.
The process of
cataloguing the records identified existing materials and what areas
needed to be expanded. Filling these gaps with source material to
build a collection that allows for displays, exhibits and academic
research has been a challenge requiring teamwork and detective work.
While some of the strategies undertaken by the nursing community in
an attempt to recover its own history have been more successful than
others, there is now an established base to build on.
For instance, a small collection of portraits of recent past
presidents and honorary members existed. But the search for
information about, and photographs of, early leaders (1916-30s)
involved going through association board minutes and newsletters,
then on to the
appropriate hospital history (if such a thing existed), or school of
nursing yearbook. Most of these individuals were supervisors,
hospital matrons and educators; many were single women, making it
difficult to trace them through their families and difficult to get
biographical data. Fortunately, it proved easier to find people who
remember individuals from the 1930s to the present and to track down
real portraits and biographical information. This past year, two
volunteers used the material collected over the last seven years to
write short biographies for each photo. An Alberta Historical
Resources Foundation grant allowed us to mount a display of
provincial nursing leaders at the AARN Museum and Archives.
A second incomplete collection was that of the hospital schools
of nursing. Initial work done by the committee of retired nurses,
who set up the archives, focused on schools that were closing. It
was decided to include all hospital schools in the follow-up on work
previously done. Hospitals were contacted to locate alumni who might
be able to provide assistance. As well, missing items were
identified and publicized in the provincial newsletter, which
resulted in many interesting materials being donated, including
biographical information about each hospital school of nursing.
 Another area associated with early nursing in the province was
public health. A variety of sources have been investigated for
Public Health Nursing-District Nursing artifacts and records.
These include Department of Health records, published histories by
Kate Colley, Director of Public Health Nursing for many years, and
Irene Stewart, a member of the District Nursing Service. A group of
local practitioners donated original photo albums created by the
District Nursing Service from 1920-73, providing an incredibly rich
resource for researchers. Individuals have provided instruments,
uniforms, textbooks, day books, a Stanley bag, birth certificates
and other forms carried by early Public Health nurses.
Collection development depends on liaising with the nursing
community. In an attempt to ferret out records and artifacts it is
essential to make use of the networks existing from training school
to practice areas. The military nurses are an example of tapping
into existing networks; the members of this group vary in age from
the late 70s to 90s. Miss Jesse Morrison, a retired nurse who was a
member of the Nursing Sisters Association of Canada (Military
Nurses) and a member of the original history committee that started
the AARN museum, was asked if she could assist in increasing the
collection in this area. She came forward with two pages of
contacts: names, addresses, phone numbers and the specific records
that each one might possibly be willing to donate. She followed this
up with phone calls to all of the contacts to let them know that
they might be contacted. We then followed up with letters. Because
of her connection to that community of nurses, we have an amazing
100 percent positive response and were able to increase this area of
the collection tremendously. Funding through donations and bequests
from this group will now allow us to develop a permanent exhibition
in our facility to honour their work on behalf of all Canadians.
 Based on the gaps identified during the initial cataloguing and
collection stage, it was clear that the documentary and artifactual
evidence we were in the process of collecting would need to be
augmented by oral histories. At the same time, many nurses were
urging that the archives seek out these stories. As a result, a
provincial oral history project was designed and conducted over two
and one-half years. Rather than going out and randomly interviewing
"old" nurses, we tried to be more systematic in our
approach, to have the best possible outcome with as much useful
research information as possible. The interviews were organized
thematically: for example, education, legislation, labour, military
and areas of practice. The stories of people who, by virtue of age,
have had different experiences in other eras were also captured.
These stories were often suggested locally by our interviewers. A
call was made for volunteers: nurses would interview nurses. The
response varied in different areas of the province but, after two
years, a core research resource of approximately 200 interviews was
available, and they are being added to continually. This project has
been particularly gratifying, not only because of the awareness it
created within the profession of the importance of documenting the
nursing experience, but also because of the participation of
university students, staff nurses, educators, nurse managers and
retired nurses.
 To date, nursing archives, where they exist, are generally richer
in administrative records than clinical practice records.
Documentation of nursing activities and processes in use in patient
care situations is very scarce for anyone wishing to establish a
more complete
understanding of a particular area of practice and its evolution.
This information is especially valuable when practices undergo
change, whether subtle or radical in nature. Technological advances
in the last 25 years have resulted in much of the change we are
witnessing today, but changes in societal values and norms are also
factors. And, of course, politically motivated activities have a
real impact on health care policies and practices.
Our aim at the Alberta Association of Registered Nurses Museum
and Archives is to preserve resources that provide evidence for
historical researchers to construct a convincing story about nurses'
past work experience, their life, and their care. Through fairly
standard strategies, a body of material has been developed for use
by researchers which is already resulting in enhancing the
visibility of the nursing profession in Alberta, and articulating
the contribution of nurses to the health care system and to the
community at large.
Lorraine Mychajlunow, BA MLIS, is archivist for the Alberta
Association of Registered Nurses. This article was first given as
the keynote address at the History Society Conference, Royal College
of Nursing, Australia, in Rockhampton, Queensland, on August 8,
1998.
Editor's Note: To assist it in accomplishing the mandate of its
museum, the Alberta Association of Registered Nurses has received
over $26,000 from the Museums Alberta Special Projects Grants
Program. Since 1991, grants were awarded in the following
categories: Exhibitions ($19,014); Training ($1,218); Bookshelf
($487); Collections Management ($5,605).
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