Ruby Ward was born in 1912 in Streethouse near Wakefield. Her earliest memory is sitting on a wall by the station watching the women return from Barnbow in 1915. She lived with her mother (who died of stomach cancer aged 80), father, two sisters and one brother. Ruby was the oldest, and her next youngest sister Gladys, was very clever, won a scholarship at the grammar school and went on to study English at Leeds, and later ran the English department at Doncaster Grammar school. Ruby and her other sister worked in clothing factories and her brother worked on a farm. Her sister went into the army in WWII. Her father had chest problems and was in a hospital near Ilkley, he was an invalid and her mother nursed him till his death. She was able to train as a Nurse at 29, she'd wanted to be a nurse since her days in guiding. She trained in fever nursing at Dewsbury Isolation Hospital treating diptheria, polio, scarlet fever and dysentry. She studied for her state registered nursing at Sheffield General. She went to run a chest clinic in Barrow-in-Furness and worked with an excellent Spanish surgeon who had been on Franco's side in the Civil War and escaped to England but couldn't practice as a surgeon in this country without re-taking another degree. She then went to train as a midwife in Leeds and then Sheffield, and later trained as a Health Visitor. She worked in the community, went visiting, ran clinics, taught mothercraft classes and worked as a School Nurse. She was part of the Health Visitors Association and the Professional Women's Club. She worked in Cambridgeshire and Leeds and for the last few years of her career worked in new health centres, before retiring in 1972.
These records were accumulated by Miss Ruby Ward during her career as a fever nurse, midwife and health visitor in the West Yorkshire area and further afield.
The first series contains records relating to her training and qualification as a nurse in different specialities. The books in the fouth series also relate to this period. The second series contains records relating to a later reunion of students on her course, and an oral history interview where she recounts her life and work. The supplementary material in the fourth series may have been gathered in research for this interview, or collected by Miss Ward, the exact provenance is unknown. The third series contains photographs from the time of her training with her nursing colleague.
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This series reflects the records of Ruby Ward's training to be a nurse and her resulting qualifications. She began by training a fever nurse, later moving into midwifery and health visiting. It also includes reference letters relating to her performance in nursing in various roles.
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Register Card for Fever Nurse Certification. Qualified 23 Jun 1944. Reg No. 14294. Includes registration badge, receipt for payment of dues to the General Nursing Council, and a newspaper clipping announcing results.
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Register Card for Nurse Certification. Qualified 29 Nov 1946. Reg No. 145127. Includes registration badge and receipt for payment of dues to the General Nursing Council.
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A Certificate of Efficiency granted by Sheffield City General hospital for student's two year study period at Dewsbury Isolation hospital and for attending lectures and passing exams.
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A set of letters informing the student of the passing of examinations and receipt of nursing badges after qualification.
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Two case books of patients kept by Ruby Ward during her midwifery training.
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Certificate detailing work done as a Pupil Midwife for six months prior to 31 Jan 1950
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Certificate for First Examination, Central Midwives Board. Dated 28 Feb 1950.
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Certificate for completion of First and Second Examination, Central Midwives Board. No. 12737. Dated 28 Feb 1950.
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Notices informing student of examination procedures for course of study, and a circular about training in gas and air from the Central Midwives Board.
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Certificate issued from the Royal Sanitary Institute for a Health Visitors qualification. Dated 30 Jun 1951.
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An official list of successful students passing their Health Visitors qualification.
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Certificate issued by the Dept of Education for the Deaf in screening for hearing defects in Young Children, dated Jun 1958.
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Two letters of reference for the work of Ruby Ward in Leeds and Barrow in Furness.
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This series contains info on a college reunion at Leeds University for students on the health visitor course, plus an oral history interview conducted in her 90s, which covers her early life, training and the changes she had noted in the profession and the way it behaves during her career.
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A set of letters based on inviting students back to celebrate the 55th anniversary of the Health Visitors course. Includes details of the celebrations and those who attended events. Includes a celebratory programme of the days events and meal options.
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An oral history interview conducted on the 18/04/2007 at Eastmoor, Wakefield when Ruby was 95 years old. She talked about her early life, her training and nursing career, her experience of working in communities and her views on the changes to the profession between the 1950s and the 1970s. Total Length: 1:11.35, and total size: 98.2MB. Copyright and use documentation included. CD included in archive, also stored on archive department server.
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This series contains photographs of Ruby and her nursing colleagues througout her training.
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Photograph from the midwifery training papers in the Ruby Ward Archive
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This series contains textbooks useful to the subject during training, and a file of magazine cuttings on the history of the profession and some of its challenges and successes.
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Three handbooks from her training and professional life retained by Ruby Ward.
"Aids to Gynaecology, 9th Edition," W.R. Winterton, Balliere, Tindall and Cox, 1943
"The New Public Health" Fred Grundy, The Leagrave Press Ltd, 1949
"Chest Surgery for Nurses" J. Leigh Collis, Bailliere, Tindall and Cox, 1944
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A number of articles on the history of midwifery, health visiting and it's traditions and equipment. Some on the local areas mentioned in the oral history interview.
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