Eisabeth Malleier:

Debates on the ‘Jewish nurse’ within the Jewish communities in Austro-Hungary around 1900

The debate about the organization of nursing became acute during the last decades of the 19^th century when big modern Jewish hospitals were built in several cities of the Habsburg Monarchy. This led to an increase in the demand for nurses and to the initiation of a discussion about the professionalisation of Jewish nursing. Different agents with different intentions were involved in these debates. While hospitals were mainly looking for inexpensive and dedicated working nurses, middle-class organizations such as B’nai B’rith emphasized the necessity for women to learn a useful profession to be able to support their husbands economically. Furthermore, feminists and women’s associations tried to set new standards for female education, emphasizing economic independence and improving the working conditions for women. Jewish feminists such as Henriette Weiss in Vienna, Ida Fuerst in Budapest and Julie Leipen in Prague tried to build up Jewish nursing schools. The different implementation strategies and the result of their efforts are the main focus of this paper.

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