CLICK HERE TO ADD YOUR EVENT

Nurses and Doctors 1660-1820: An Uneasy Alliance

Join Professor Alannah Tomkins at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh to explore the unstable working relationship between nurses and doctors in the time before nursing reform.

Nurses and Doctors 1660-1820: An Uneasy Alliance

About Nurses and Doctors 1660-1820: An Uneasy Alliance

Nurses working before the period of reform in the 1850s have popularly been written off as drunk and incompetent – but does this stereotype hold up to scrutiny?

This lecture will consider the lived experiences of women employed as nurses in the years between the final outbreak of plague and the birth of Florence Nightingale, and their interactions with male medical practitioners. The two occupational groups formed an uneasy and unstable alliance in private, in both domestic and institutional care settings, but public exposure generally saw this alliance break down. This lecture will also explore what the nurses might have thought about their problematic position in the work-place.

Professor Alannah Tomkins is a Professor of Social History at Keele University and author of Medical misadventure in an age of professionalisation, 1780-1890.

Tickets for this event cost £3. Bookings are available through the Eventbrite website link above.

Students and under 18s with ID cards and medical practitioners who are Fellows or Members of the College will be admitted free of charge.

Please email library@rcpe.ac.uk if you are a student, under 18 or a Fellow or Member of the College and would like to be added to the attendee list.

Sponsored Links

MNB
Kevin Quantum
Renfrewshire Council
Hilton Glasgow
Children's Classic Concerts
Salvation Army
Tea Green

Other Events at Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh

Christmas Lecture: Dr Benji Waterhouse

4th December 2025

Join us at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh for our annual Christmas Lecture with speaker Dr Benji Waterhouse on Thursday 4th December!

READ MORE

A Yuletide Evening of Ghost Stories

9th December 2025

Join Storyteller Nicola Wright for the festive tradition of telling ghost stories by the fireside at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh on Tuesday 9th December!

READ MORE

Sponsored Links

The Chocolatarium
Fayre Play
Mowgli
Escape The Past
Hilton Glasgow
WST
Go Ape

Similar events you might like...

Guided Looking: An Artwork Audio Described

Guided Looking: An Artwork Audio Described

Selected dates between 20th February 2025 - 18th December 2025

Join Fiona Johnston, audio describer, as she describes various artwork and objects from the Royal Collection at the Palace of Holyroodhouse.

READ MORE
Palace Page Turners

Palace Page Turners

Selected dates between 7th March 2025 - 5th December 2025

Many authors have been inspired to pick up their pen to write about the Palace of Holyroodhouse. These sessions will explore these literary works followed by a hearty discussion!

READ MORE
Information Lecture: Help and Healing on the Spiritual Path through the teaching of Bruno Groening

Information Lecture: Help and Healing on the Spiritual Path through the teaching of Bruno Groening

Selected dates between 23rd March 2025 - 21st December 2025

A lecture about spiritual healing and help through the teaching of Bruno Groening is taking place at The Open Door Community Centre, Edinburgh on various dates throughout the year.

READ MORE
Find Out Fridays

Find Out Fridays

Selected dates between 15th August 2025 - 19th December 2025

Explore a different theme each week on Friday afternoons, during school term-time, with our Learning team at the National Museum of Scotland.

READ MORE
Coffee & French Conversation

Coffee & French Conversation

Selected dates between 2nd October 2025 - 4th December 2025

Want to practice your French in an informal setting? Join us at the Institut français d’Écosse for a relaxed morning chat – over a cup of coffee or tea and a croissant or pain au chocolat!

READ MORE
Beneath the Surface: King’s Gallery Short Talks

Beneath the Surface: King’s Gallery Short Talks

Selected dates between 23rd October 2025 - 26th February 2026

Join our team at the Palace of Holyroodhouse for weekly gallery talks as part of the exhibition Drawing the Italian Renaissance!

READ MORE
Weekly Tours at St Cecilia’s Hall

Weekly Tours at St Cecilia’s Hall

Selected dates between 25th October 2025 - 28th November 2025

Join our team of volunteers at St Cecilia's Hall for a FREE weekly tour of the collection!

READ MORE
The Cunninghame Graham Lecture 2025

The Cunninghame Graham Lecture 2025

12th November 2025

This year's Cunninghame Graham Lecture will be from William Chislett and is titled '50 Years After Franco: Spain’s Profound Transformation, 1975-2025'.

READ MORE
Meet the author Arnaud de La Grange

Meet the author Arnaud de La Grange

12th November 2025

Come along to the Institut français d'Écosse on Wednesday 12th November and meet author Arnaud de La Grange - journalist, UK and Ireland correspondent for Le Figaro, and a writer!

READ MORE

Find other events in Edinburgh

Sponsored Links

MNB
Kevin Quantum
Renfrewshire Council
Hilton Glasgow
Children's Classic Concerts
Salvation Army
Tea Green
The Chocolatarium
Fayre Play
Mowgli
Escape The Past
Hilton Glasgow
WST
Go Ape

Popular Events

Panto 2025: Jack and the Beanstalk
Join Allan Stewart, Grant Stott and Jordan Young for the GIANT of a pantomime we've all BEAN waiting for!
Edinburgh’s Christmas: Christmas Market
One of the most iconic Christmas Markets in Europe, Edinburgh's Christmas Market returns to East Princes Street Gardens showcasing the best in artisan festive products and goods from local makers!
Castle Of Light
Make Castle of Light: Fire and Ice part of your festive plans and enjoy the largest annual projection show in the UK when it returns for its sixth year!
James Morrison
Chart-topping singer songwriter James Morrison returns to the Usher Hall on 10th May to perform the no.1 album 'Undiscovered'!
Christmas at the Botanics
Explore the sights and sounds of Christmas in this magical after dark experience when it returns to the Royal Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh!

Popular Listings

Corn Exchange Haddington Edinburgh Playhouse Festival Theatre Edinburgh Howden Park Centre Livingston Kings Theatre Edinburgh National Museum of Scotland O2 Academy Edinburgh The Brunton Theatre, Musselburgh Traverse Theatre Usher Hall