Nutrire: Nurture, nursing a material culture analysis of invalid/infant feeders and the aesthetics and caring of nursing

This dissertation analyzes a nursing artifact: the infant/invalid feeder. A material culture analysis, developed by the author, is utilized for the in depth study of 12 feeders. This work assumes that Caring is the core value of what constitutes nursing and nursing practice. The expression of the aesthetics of nursing through the act of feeding and use of infant/invalid feeders, aesthetic knowing and expression of that knowing, links caring and caring presence.The act of feeding another, whether sick or infant has been the domestic sphere of women throughout history and is also considered one of the most important duties of the nurse. For centuries women have provided nourishment to others. Much of this has been accomplished through the use of utensils designed specifically for the purpose of feeding those too ill or young to independently do so themselves.Material culture study, a method of examining artifacts and the cultural messages that they contain is employed as the methodology for research. A detailed investigation of the nursing literature reveals that there have been no material culture studies of nursing's artifacts to date. In this dissertation the author designed and utilized her own model for the analysis of 12 invalid feeders.The material culture analysis of the twelve feeders leads to a greater understanding of the history and evolution of nursing practice in the United States. Significance and recognition of feeders in England and their continued use versus their obscurity and unfamiliarity in the United States serves an example of the changes and differences that have occurred within the social context of the culture as a whole and nursing culture in particular.Feeding of patients with feeders by nurses serves as an example of the complexities of human caring and the aesthetic practice of nursing. Nurses can gain from the material culture studies of nursing artifacts, paying greater attention to the ways that make us human and humane. This work has related the caring and the aesthetic of nursing practice to the everyday act of feeding and challenges nurses to continue to find ways to demonstrate nurturing and caring to those we have the privilege to nurse.