"If you ask people to describe a nurse, depending on how much they use the NHS, they might describe a white young female, more an image of Florence Nightingale. The exhibition examines how this stereotype image originated, and not just how inaccurate it is, but also how damaging it can be in recruitment, for example, in attracting men to nursing."
"More recently, the exhibition looks at how nurses faced racism, and maybe we can ponder how much of that was latent racism that would be aimed at anyone who migrated to the UK, and how much was specific to nurses who are supposed to be "young white females" and when faced by a middle-aged Caribbean man, it broke the rules about what a nurse should look like."
An exhibition traces the mythologising of nurses as saints, angels, and heroes, often portrayed as young, white females in the image of Florence Nightingale. The display links historical objects and modern art to show how that stereotype originated and how it harms recruitment and inclusion, particularly for men and non-conforming nurses. Wartime propaganda, racist responses to migrant nurses, and pandemic-era protective gear all challenged or reinforced expectations about appearance and role. The exhibit juxtaposes Victorian portraits, radical nurses’ posters, a striking wartime drawing, stained glass detail, and handwritten protest placards to reveal tensions in public perception.
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