ABSTRACT
The single qualified nurse It had never been the aim of the Fever Nurses' Association nor the GNC for England and Wales, that fever nursing should be a stand-alone qualification. Although some nurses assumed that they were able to work in any setting, it
was a false premise which Susan Villiers, the new president of the FNA, strongly refuted in 1925. She stated then that such a nurse would remain 'a partially trained woman.'3 When the GNCs assumed responsibility for training, fever nurse leaders lost their autonomy, but they banded themselves into professional associations, the League of Fever Nurses and the Infectious Hospitals Matrons ' Association, from which they drew strength. They continued to struggle to achieve rights for the fever nurse, but following the closure of most isolation hospitals, they had little influence. Having failed to keep the Fever Register open, the reformed Infectious Hospitals Matrons ' and Nurses ' Association turned its attention to the status of the single qualified RFN, working in hospitals other than infectious diseases hospitals. A letter was sent on 5 April 1969 to the GNG for England and Wales, expressing concern about this mat ter . In her reply on 16 April, Miss M. Henry, Registrar, explained that these difficulties had concerned the GNC for some considerable time.
