Title: A Woman Should Know: The Role of Nurses in the History of Breastfeeding, 1950-1978

Abstract: For most of the second-half of the 20th century, nurses and doctors were formally taught very little about how to successfully assist a mother with breastfeeding. Despite their lack of education, however, nurses were routinely left in charge of overseeing the feeding of newborns – whether they were bottle-fed or breastfed. In this talk, I explore how nurses, as both women and healthcare professionals, positioned themselves as breastfeeding experts in the hospital and in the press.

Time: 12:15 PM
Place: Claire M. Fagin Hall, School of Nursing, University of Pennsylvania
Room 2019, 2U Conference Room
The Bates Center Seminar Series features scholarly papers and presentations on the history of nursing and health care and welcomes all interested individuals.