Lectures and Papers

The lectures and papers will deal with varied aspects of the historical development of the profession in the last two centuries of its history, something which will help to learn in depth about this period and its changes.

The inaugural conference, with the title of the Congress “A Century Taking Care of Society”, will be given by Dr. Judith Shamian, President of the International Council of Nurses (Consejo Internacional de Enfermería), a body that oversees the development of the profession internationally. Therefore, she, as a representative and connoisseur of the role that nurses have been developing around the world, will focus on what this fact means.

The memory of the gestation of this event  (the official recognition of Nursing in Spain), recognized by the Provision of the Royal Order of H.M. King Alfonso XIII, on May 7th, 1915 (Gaceta de Madrid, May 21st, 2015), at the request of the Congregation of the Servants of María, will highlight the contribution of the religious orders to the professional recognition of nursing and their vocational dedication to the assistance to and care of the sick in hospitals and other institutions both in Spain and in America. To tackle this last aspect, we will have the discourse of Dr. Barbra Mann Wall, Associate Director of the Barbara Bates Center, considered one of the most important research centres for the study of the history of nursing, located in the University of Pennsylvania (USA).

The Conference "One Hundred Years of Spanish Nursing" will be given by Mrs. Mª Paz Mompart, one of the architects of the process of recognition of nursing as a university profession and of giving strength to its training.

The closing conference “Keys to Facing the Professional Future” will be given by Mrs. Rocío Cardeñoso Herrero, President of the Colegio Oficial de Enfermería de Cantabria (Official Association of Nursing of Cantabria), who has held various positions in the Servicio Cántabro de Salud (Health Service of Cantabria), in Primary Care, and is a good connoisseur of nursing.

Also, through several sessions, we will analyse the different ways in which nursing has been developed, its role and contribution to the field of health from the dimension of assistance, teaching and research, and the scientific-technical, human and ethical progress.

On the other hand, other fields of interest of the congress will be the Tables of Papers, in which we will analyze specific issues which will broaden the scientific content of the Tables of Papers. These contributions, as well as the debates arising from them, will bring a wealth of knowledge of our historical legacy. All in all, this will constitute a net which will lead us to enjoy the value of our profession and to highly appreciate the importance of researching its history.

THEMATIC LINES OF THE CONGRESS