Interview with Phyllis Chisholm, Lillian Bartlett, May 10, 1979
Project: Frontier Nursing Service Oral History Project
Interview Summary
At the time of the interview Phyllis Chisholm was a director of nurse education in England, and Lillian Bartlett was an educational supervisor who visited training schools for the Central Midwives' Board. They comment upon a number of factors that changed English midwifery practices and also talk about nursing and health care. Chisholm indicates that the English nurse never performs the particular functions of the American family nurse practitioner and that she, Chisholm, is opposed to the latter concept; the English nurse performs more of a preventive role and may never diagnose or treat. The English midwife does not assess the condition of the patient during pregnancy as does her American counterpart, and the English doctor determines all treatment. Chisholm talks about hospital facilities in England and the low incidence of home births; she is greatly in favor of hospital deliveries. The informants discuss Mary Breckinridge and the application of her concepts to the FNS area. All comment upon the differences between the British philosophy of nursing and the FNS concept of the nurse-midwife. Some differences are seen to result from the orientation of Britons toward socialized medicine.[Molly Lee also briefly participates in this interview.]
Interview Accession
Interviewee Name
Lillian Bartlett
Interviewer Name
Interview Date
Interview Rights
All rights to the interviews, including but not restricted to legal title, copyrights and literary property rights, have been transferred to the University of Kentucky Libraries.Interview Usage
Interviews may be reproduced with permission from Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, Special Collections, University of Kentucky Libraries.Restriction
Interviews may be reproduced with permission from Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, Special Collections, University of Kentucky Libraries.
All rights to the interviews, including but not restricted to legal title, copyrights and literary property rights, have been transferred to the University of Kentucky Libraries.
Add this interview to your cart in order to begin the process of requesting access to a copy of and/or permission to reproduce interview(s).
Chisholm, Phyllis Interview by Dale Deaton. 10 May. 1979. Lexington, KY: Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries.
Chisholm, P. (1979, May 10). Interview by D. Deaton. Frontier Nursing Service Oral History Project. Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries, Lexington.
Chisholm, Phyllis, interview by Dale Deaton. May 10, 1979, Frontier Nursing Service Oral History Project, Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries.
You may come across language in UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center collections and online resources that you find harmful or offensive. SCRC collects materials from different cultures and time periods to preserve and make available the historical record. These materials document the time period when they were created and the view of their creator. As a result, some may demonstrate racist and offensive views that do not reflect the values of UK Libraries.
If you find description with problematic language that you think SCRC should review, please contact us at SCRC@uky.edu.
Persistent Link for this Record: https://kentuckyoralhistory.org/ark:/16417/xt7ffb4wkz17