Edmonton General nurses recall expert training, friends

Nursing school's 100th anniversary evokes flood of heartfelt memories

- photo supplied Six nurses were the first graduates of the Edmonton General School of Nursing in 1911.

By RAMON GONZALEZ
WCR Staff Writer
Edmonton

Dolores Forestier Wiart and Dianne Dunnigan recall with fondness their days as students in the Edmonton General Hospital School of Nursing. For both, the best feature of the school was its residence.

"Living in residence was probably the bonus of being a nursing student in those days because of the friendships that you made," Wiart said in an interview. "You did a lot of sharing and caring. If you had a hard day, you always had a friend to go to."

Wiart, who graduated in 1967, shared a room for three years with the late Paulette Dusseault and they became like sisters. "I'm very grateful to the Grey Nuns for the education that I received there."

Dunnigan, a graduate of the class of 1963, chose the General's School of Nursing because "it was probably the best school of nursing in the city at that time. We were really taught to care for the patient, to always put the patient first."

100th anniversary

Wiart and Dunnigan are two of 2,099 graduates the school produced from 1908 until it was absorbed by Grant MacEwan College in 1972. They are among some 1,200 graduates and instructors expected to attend the 100th anniversary of the school April 25 at St. Maria Goretti Church, 9110-110 Ave. Mass will be celebrated at 4 p.m. followed by a banquet.

The EGH School of Nursing opened in 1908 when the Grey Nuns realized they didn't have enough staff to provide patient care at their 111th Street and Jasper Avenue facility. There were only four sisters at the time performing tasks such as kitchen, laundry, housekeeping, patient care and gardening.

Training school opens

So a decision was made to open a training school for nurses in September 1908. Six young women enrolled for a two-and-a-half year course under the direction of Sister Mary Ann Casey.

For these six women, the next 30 months passed in a hectic whirl of bedside care and comprehensive education. It was this first class that developed the school motto, Estote Fideles, which translates to Always be Faithful.

For decades students served as free labour in exchange for their nursing education. They were given free room and board, a uniform, laundry, education and medical care in exchange for committing themselves to three years of looking after patients, Wiart wrote in a brief history she compiled for the school's centennial.

"This sounds like exploitation today. However, it was a godsend for those young women who desperately wanted to improve their education but simply could not find a way to earn enough money that institutions of higher learning were charging at the time."

Students were scheduled for one of two 12-hour shifts 7 days a week. Once a week they were allowed three hours off. In 1916 this was increased to half a day off and this did not change until almost 30 years later.

Classes were mandatory, usually from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sister Casey taught nursing arts and anatomy while the medical staff taught medicine, surgery, pediatrics, gynecology, physiology and psychiatry.

During the two world wars the length of training was increased to include preparation for the Army Medical Corps. Twelve EGH grads served overseas.

Many things changed over the years. The uniform's bib became less stiff, the caps changed in keeping with Grey Nuns nursing hospitals across Canada.

"The skirts got shorter and the students started getting a stipend," Wiart wrote.

"Every new student was designated to a big sister who would be in a class a year ahead of her.

Marry and you're out

"Should a student propose to enter the holy state of Matrimony, the result was dismissal." This rule only changed in 1965.

Some found the 10 p.m. curfew too much and put a dummy in their bed so the housemother did not look too closely.

In 1967, a new residence was opened. It housed 253 students. The old residence was demolished in 1969.

In 1971 the school was transferred to College Saint Jean. The following year, when the University of Alberta absorbed College Saint Jean, the nursing program was transferred to Grant MacEwan Community College.

Wiart enrolled at the nursing school because it was a Catholic institution that offered free education. Coming from a family of six, it would have been difficult for her parents to send her to university.

Wiart got married two weeks after graduation and then headed north to work as a nurse in the McLennan Hospital.

"I was just a new graduate and they put me in charge of pediatrics," she laughed. The mother of four later worked in Calgary and Edmonton before retiring in 1988.

"Lots of times we were used as staff (at the hospital)," said Dunnigan.

"Maybe we resented it while were in training. But it was a wise move because it provided us with invaluable experience."

Since her 1963 graduation Dunnigan, a mother of four, served in the maternity wards of various hospitals, including the General and the Grey Nuns, until she retired in 1994.

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