Ireland’s Loss Britain’s Gain

Nurses still have a less conspicuous presence than navvies in popular perceptions about Irish workers in post-war Britain. There is also surprisingly little published research into Irish nurses’ experiences in Britain, so this is a hugely welcome publication. Based on 40 years of research, it is the first book-length study of the subject, and for that reason alone, is not only a milestone in Irish migration studies but an important contribution to the social history of Britain too. It is the product of a huge exercise of meticulous data gathering into a hidden aspect of British and Irish life. As well as putting Irish nursing in Britain into rich historical context, it also includes numerous fascinating interviews with individual nurses (male as well as female) and reveals deep insights into the personal motivations and particular circumstances of an otherwise seemingly homogenous group of migrant workers in the decades following the Second World War. The camaraderie & mutual support during a trying time in relations between the two countries, the conflicts between SEN and SRN nursing and the particular challenges in psychiatric hospitals, are just some of the issues Ethel Corduff, a former nurse herself, shines her torch into. This is a book which deserves much wider attention from social scientists than it has so far received. It also opens a window onto a profession which all of us will be familiar with, but most of us know very little about.

Ethel’s Corduff’s book, Ireland’s loss Britain’s gain, is a well deserved homage to Irish nurses in Britain, from the time of Florence Nightingale right up to the Millennium. The early part of the book is rich in historical detail referencing Ireland’s heritage in care and healing as far back as the Brehan Laws, Saint Brigid and the well known religious sisters, Mary Aikenhead and Catherine McAuley.

The reader will delight in reading stories about women such as Mary Donnelly, the Irish midwife who performed the first successful caesarean in 1738 and the former General Secretary of the INO, Annie Smithson who was also a bestselling novelist.

The book really comes alive with stories of the real life experiences of some of those nurses, including the author herself. Generally from farming or working class backgrounds and with little education these women despite their initial homesickness went on to have very successful careers and found friendship and loyalty among their own. Many married and made England their home, ensuring that Ireland’s loss was very much Britain’s gain.

The book is very well referenced with detailed sources and is dedicated to the author’s missing brother, Victor Walsh.