The Flu Pandemic of 1918: A Nurse's Story

Am J Nurs. 2021 Nov 1;121(11):61-65. doi: 10.1097/01.NAJ.0000799012.83102.ae.ABSTRACTIn the spring of 1918, a virus swept across the world, killing approximately 50 million people by the summer of 1919. My grandmother, Kathryn ("Katie") Ann Darmody-an Irish immigrant who settled in New York State in 1904-was among the nurses who responded to this pandemic, which became known as the 1918 influenza pandemic (or, erroneously, the Spanish flu). Today, as the world contends with the COVID-19 pandemic, my grandmother's experiences resonate with new meaning-a reminder of how, then as now, nurses have been at the forefront of public health. Her story, transmitted across generations, is one I now share with a new generation of nurses.PMID:34673695 | DOI:10.1097/01.NAJ.0000799012.83102.ae

Source: The American Journal of Nursing - October 21, 2021 Category: Nursing Authors: Deborah Johnson Source Type: research