Agnes S. Ward

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Agnes S. Ward
A middle-aged white woman in a nurse's uniform, seated at a desk
Agnes S. Ward, from a 1918 publication
BornFebruary 22, 1868
Scotland
DiedNovember 29, 1938 (age 70)
New York, New York, U.S.
Occupations
  • Nurse
  • nursing educator
  • medical missionary

Agnes S. Ward (February 22, 1868[1] – November 29, 1938) was a Scottish-born American nurse, medical missionary in Africa, and nursing educator. She was principal of the Metropolitan Hospital Training School for Nurses in New York City, and superintendent of nurses for the New York City Department of Welfare.

Early life and education[edit]

Ward was born in Scotland, and moved to the United States in 1885. She graduated from the Metropolitan Hospital Training School for Nurses in 1895,[2] with further training at Brookline Hospital.[3]

Career[edit]

After her nurses' training, Ward went to the Congo Free State, where she served for three years as a medical missionary and teacher. She was principal of the Metropolitan Hospital Training School for Nurses on Blackwell's Island from 1908[3] to 1920. From 1920 to 1926, she was superintendent of nurses for the city's Department of Welfare.[2][4] She spoke at high schools and churches to recruit nursing students into the city's training programs,[5] and to promote nursing as a career with wide opportunities.[4][6] She oversaw a training course for graduate nurses working on tuberculosis wards at Seaview Hospital on Staten Island in 1923.[7]

She was vice-president of the New York State Nurses' Association,[8] and president of the Metropolitan Hospital Training School's alumnae association.[9]

Publications[edit]

Ward wrote essays for professional journals, including American Journal of Nursing,[10][11] The Trained Nurse and Hospital Review,[12][13] and Nursing World.[14][15]

  • "Suggestions for What is Required in Building a Nurses' Home" (1910)[16]
  • "Nursing in Mission Stations: Some Nursing Problems in Africa" (1914)[11]
  • "The Training of Attendants" (1920)[10]
  • "What We Owe to the Student Nurse" (1920)[17]
  • "The Continent of Africa: Its Vastness, Resources, and People" (1921)[18]
  • "Has the Time Come to Abolish the Probationary Period" (1921)[19]
  • "African Religious Beliefs and their Social Effects" (1921)[12]
  • "The African Woman" (1921)[13]
  • "The African Man: A Study in Primitive Sociology" (1922)[15]
  • "The African Man, II: A Study of Primitive Emotions" (1922)[20]
  • "Training Schools for Attendants: The Problem of the Special Hospital" (1922)[14]

Personal life[edit]

Ward became a naturalized United States citizen in 1903. She retired in 1926, and she died in 1938, at the age of 70, in New York City.[2][21]

References[edit]

  1. ^ 1868 is the birth year given in Ward's 1903 naturalization paperwork, and in the 1910 federal census; via Ancestry.
  2. ^ a b c "Miss Agnes S. Ward, Head of City Nurses; Former Medical Missionary in Congo Free State Dies". The New York Times. November 30, 1938. p. 23. Retrieved 2024-04-04.
  3. ^ a b "Personals". The American Journal of Nursing. 8 (7): 561. April 1908.
  4. ^ a b "Big Opportunity in Nursing". The Red Cross Bulletin. 4 (27): 7. June 28, 1920.
  5. ^ "Nurses' School to Open July 1; Will be Conducted at Greenpoint Hospital". Times Union. 1920-06-27. p. 8. Retrieved 2024-04-05 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Call for American Nurses". Logansport Pharos-Tribune. 1920-07-26. p. 2. Retrieved 2024-04-05 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ "New Training for Nurses". The New York Times. January 28, 1923. p. 145. Retrieved 2024-04-05.
  8. ^ "Nursing News and Announcements". American Journal of Nursing. 21: 193. December 1920 – via Internet Archive.
  9. ^ "Regular Meetings: New York". The American Journal of Nursing: 388. February 1904 – via Internet Archive.
  10. ^ a b Ward, Agnes S. (June 1920). "The Training of Attendants". The American Journal of Nursing. 20 (9): 689–692 – via Internet Archive.
  11. ^ a b Ward, Agnes S. (1914). "Some Nursing Problems in Africa". The American Journal of Nursing. 14 (12): 1078–1082. doi:10.2307/3404578. ISSN 0002-936X. JSTOR 3404578.
  12. ^ a b Ward, Agnes S. "African Religious Beliefs and their Social Effects" The Trained Nurse and Hospital Review 66(5)(May 1921): 416-418; continued in 66(6)(June 1921): 507-510.
  13. ^ a b Ward, Agnes S. "The African Woman" The Trained Nurse and Hospital Review 67(3)(September 1921): 228-232; continued in 67(4)(October 1921): 325-329.
  14. ^ a b Ward, Agnes S. "Training Schools for Attendants: The Problem of the Special Hospital" Nursing World (January 1922): 24-27.
  15. ^ a b Ward, Agnes S. "The African Man: A Study in Primitive Sociology" Nursing World (March 1922): 233-235.
  16. ^ Ward, Agnes S. (March 1910). "Suggestions for What is Required in Building a Nurses' Home". American Journal of Nursing. 10 (6): 399. ISSN 0002-936X.
  17. ^ Ward, Agnes S. (September 1920). "What We Owe to the Student Nurse". The American Journal of Nursing. 20 (12): 953–955. doi:10.2307/3406583. ISSN 0002-936X. JSTOR 3406583.
  18. ^ Ward, Agnes S. "The Continent of Africa: Its Vastness, Resources, and People" The Trained Nurse and Hospital Review 66(3)(March 1921): 208-213.
  19. ^ Ward, Agnes S. "Has the Time Come to Abolish the Probationary Period" The Trained Nurse and Hospital Review 66(4)(April 1921): 301-303.
  20. ^ Ward, Agnes S. "The African Man, II: A Study of Primitive Emotions" Nursing World (March 1922): 327-328.
  21. ^ "Agnes S. Ward, Ex-Superintendent of Nurses". Daily News. 1938-11-30. p. 48. Retrieved 2024-04-05 – via Newspapers.com.