ABSTRACT
Source: Day, D. The Long Loneliness. San Francisco (CA): HarperCollins, 1952/1980. Reproduced by permission.
From the beginning I enjoyed the work. In 1918 nursing was a simpler thing than it is today. We went on the ward at seven in the morning and our work day lasted twelve hours. For two hours in the afternoon we were off duty, not to rest, but to attend lectures on materia medica physiology or anatomy. For the first three months we were probationers and wore pink uniforms with big white aprons. At the end of three months we passed to blue and white striped dresses with stiff white collars and a white starched cap, of which we were most proud. For three years until graduation this was the uniform, and then we wore white.
