International Aids, Knowledge Flow and the Development of Nursing Profession in Taiwan, 1945-1970s

International aids, knowledge flow and the development of Nursing profession in Taiwan, 1945-1970s Before Japanese ruled Taiwan, the main source of nursing knowledge had come from medical missionary based on the Presbyterian Church system. In order to do missionary work, many female western missionaries brought in the western nursing system. After 1895, due to the Japanese colonial policy, western medical system was introduced into Taiwan, women were also trained to help physicians in caring patients at the time. However the image of nurses began to change. The KMT government came to Taiwan in 1949 from Mainland China. National Defense Medical Center was established in 1947, represented U.S. medical education and U.S healthcare system was brought into Taiwan. After the 1950s, Taiwan's nursing profession became a mixture of American nursing and the traditional Japanese colonial nursing, and created a unique characteristic of nursing profession in Taiwan. This study will use data from the Archive of Council for U.S. Aid, the Sino-American Joint Commission on Rural Reconstruction, Taiwan Provincial Health Department, Taiwan Provincial Government Department of Education, Rockefeller Archive Center, National Archive Bureau, ABMAC archives regarding Taiwan’s nursing profession collected in Columbia University Library, nursing journals and nursing textbooks. In addition to the use of the text and archives, in order to understand the situation of clinical nursing practice , this study will interview senior nursing staffs. Taking into account of international aids, gender, and nursing profession organizations and education, this study will show the appearance of nursing knowledge and practices during 1945-1970s, and retrospectively examines how the society reacted when new nursing systems or concepts were introduced to Taiwan.

Project ID:PF10406-2788
External Project ID:MOST104-2511-S182-002-MY2