Nurses - A Caring Legacy

Hospitals were able to keep costs down in the "olden days" by training their nurses and doctors, who provided inexpensive professional help in exchange for little more than food, a bed and the experience.

Madison General and Methodist supported their own nursing schools - Madison General from 1902 to 1982 and Methodist from 1921 to 1974. Both schools of nursing graduated thousands of people whose influence is felt today in the caring legacy they left behind.

Madison General officially started its nursing school in 1902. Candidates for admission had to:

• Meet an age requirement (between 21-31 years of age)
• Possess a high school diploma
• Have letters attesting to their physical and moral fitness
• Offer proof of vaccination
• Display "teeth in perfect order!"

Curriculum called for two years of training, three after 1914. Students usually worked 12-hour shifts with two hours off each weekday and a free afternoon once a week. In return, students received room and board and $6 a month.

The Methodist Hospital School of Nursing began instruction in November 1921 with a class of seven students. The Methodist program expanded in 1942 when a three-story building at 330 West Washington Avenue was purchased and converted into a student dormitory.

The Federal government financed the expansion as part of its Cadet program, intending to train nurses for military service during World War II.

Today, more than 30 nurses who are graduates of these two programs still work at Meriter.

5/6/2004