The history of this tough profession and the transition it underwent when "modern nursing" was brought to New Zealand via English expat nurses, has been captured in a new book called New Zealand Nurses: Caring for our people 1880 - 1950 by Pamela Wood.
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It looks at how New Zealand developed its own distinct 'Kiwi' nursing culture - and is stacked with the words of the nurses themselves - sometimes sad, often times matter-of-fact and many times, downright funny.
Kathryn Ryan talks to her about New Zealand became the first country to have not only a chief nurse, but a specific Nurses Registration Act, an enfranchised nursing workforce and an eight-hour day for nurses in training.
