Some view nursing as a vocation, not a career – one that sadly does not receive the recognition or financial recompense it deserves. However in the world of make believe, nurses have fared considerably better. Here is a look at the top six nurses from pop culture.
1. Florence Nightingale
Often referred to as the mother of modern nursing, began her professional life in 1845 against her upper class British family’s wishes and single-handedly pressured the British government to improve the horrendous hospital conditions during the Crimean War.
In a male-dominated society, Florence Nightingale became one of the most famous people in Britain at that time and founded the Florence Nightingale School of Nursing and Midwifery at London’s King’s College. Her name, like Nurse Ratched’s, has become synonymous with nursing.
2. Clara Barton
Founder of the Red Cross in 1881, American nurse and teacher Clara Barton easily earns a place on this list. Beginning with the Battle of Bull Run in the Civil War, Barton proved herself capable of handling the horrors of war and was not afraid to sneak behind enemy lines to get the job done.
3. Nurse Ratched (One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest)
Nurse Ratched makes this list for a different reason than the others. As a pop culture icon, Ratched has been referenced in countless movies, TV series (both dramatic and sitcoms), in books, and has been great boogie-woman fodder for comedians for decades. Played to Oscar perfection by Louise Fletcher in the 1975 film, Ratched will go down as one of the fictional world’s great nemesises.
4. Catherine Barkley (A Farewell To Arms)
Hemingway was ahead of his time in his depiction of Catherine Barkley in his 1929 novel. More than just a love interest for Hemingway’s protagonist, Barkley could hold her own on the professional front while still being intense and passionate in affairs of the heart; A nurse and a woman for the ages.
5. Hot Lips Houlihan (M.A.S.H)
Played for laugh or tears with equal grace, Loretta Swit’s Major Houlihan is a major (pun intended) addition to the history of nurses in popular culture. Originally played by Sally Kellerman in the film version, Swit took what was a one-note character and made her real and memorable. Houlihan went on to run the nurses on the show and quickly got the reputation as someone you did not want to cut corners on.
6. Nurse Mary Lamont (Dr. Kildare)
Eternally betrothed to Dr. James Kildare in prolific author Max Brand’s immensely popular novels, nurse Mary Lamont was no doe-eyed wallflower. Sure, her heart belonged to Dr. Kildare but while on duty she was all business. Lamont was a smart – capable nurse who knew her job and did it well both in the books and on the screen in more than a dozen Dr. Kildare films made during the 1940s. Given Kildare’s penchant for radical treatments, he needed an assistant who could keep up. Nurse Lamont did that in spades.
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