No nurses, no women, no women, no church : a preliminary history of remote area nursing at Birdsville'

This paper seeks to examine the social context in which the remote nursing outpost known as the “Brisbane Home” at Birdsville was established. This was the Australian Inland Mission’s (AIM) first remote area nursing endeavour in Queensland. Why did John Flynn seek to include Birdsville in his vision to bring health care to isolated Australians? Who were the first nurses and under what conditions did they begin their service in this lonely outpost? Beginning analysis of key concepts considered in this paper include the influence of a pioneering ethos on the establishment of the AIM nursing outposts. Who were to be the recipients of the nursing care provided? Was the application of a principle of primary health care, namely community participation, seen to be important to the success of the venture? What was the strategic importance of Birdsville and why was the nursing station called the Brisbane Home? What was the role expectation of the first nurses and how, if at all did this differ from the generally expected nursing role of the early nineteen twenties? Historical analysis affords us an opportunity to answer these questions and with the benefit of hindsight, gain some understanding of this unique part of nursing’s history.