Devices & Desires - (Studies in Social Medicine) by Margarete Sandelowski (Paperback)

About the Book

This informative assessment of the relationship between nursing and technology from the 1860s to the present day presents Sandelowski's argument that technology has helped shape and identify persistent dilemmas in nursing and that it has both advanced and impeded the development of the profession.

Book Synopsis

Nursing and technology have been inexorably linked since the beginnings of trained nursing in the United States in the late nineteenth century. Whether or not they thought of the devices they used as technology, nurses have necessarily used a variety of tools, instruments, and machines -- from thermometers to cardiac monitors -- to appraise, treat, and comfort patients. Tracing the relationship between nursing and technology from the 1870s to the present, Margarete Sandelowski argues that technology has helped shape and intensify persistent dilemmas in nursing and that it has both advanced and impeded the development of the profession.

Sandelowski examines key moments in the history of nursing that dramatize the ironies of the nursing-technology relationship. She demonstrates that nurses both embraced and rejected technology in their pursuit of cultural visibility and professional autonomy -- with varying amounts of success.

As one of the domains of female work historically most subject to sex segregation, Sandelowski notes, nursing provides an ideal site in which to examine the interplay of technology and gender.

Review Quotes

This book should be read by historians of technology and medical and nursing historians.

"American Historical Review" "Make[s] a valuable contribution to the history of technology and the history of nursing."--###Isis# "This elegantly written book is one of the best histories of nursing available today. ###Devices and Desires# is one of the best case studies of the impact of technology on work that I have ever read; it will make a profound contribution to the literature on labor history. Sandelowski is philosophically acute, especially when she explores the nature of human/machine interactions. Readers who are interested in gender studies will also be fascinated by this exploration of gender and technological change."--Ruth Schwartz Cowan, State University of New York at Stony Brook "Margarete Sandelowski's latest book, ###Devices and Desires#, continues her groundbreaking scholarship on technology and its relationships with nursing and the care of patients. Sandelowski employs the perspective of time to illuminate her themes of the 'promise and paradox' of technology and caregiving. This book is a must read for all concerned with competent, compassionate care and for all who hope to better understand the world we work and live in."--Joan E. Lynaugh, University of Pennsylvania

[A] unique exploration of the impact of technology on nursing care.

"Choice"

A first-rate book that anyone interested in health care should be familiar with.

"Bulletin of the History of Medicine"

Sandelowski expands and deepens our understanding of both nursing and technology.

"Technology and Culture"

This brilliant book shows just how much the 'charitable, devotional and altruistic' image of the nurse conceals.

"Nation"

ÝA¨ unique exploration of the impact of technology on nursing care.

"Choice"

"This book should be read by historians of technology and medical and nursing historians.

"American Historical Review" ""Make[s] a valuable contribution to the history of technology and the history of nursing.""--###Isis# ""This elegantly written book is one of the best histories of nursing available today. ###Devices and Desires# is one of the best case studies of the impact of technology on work that I have ever read; it will make a profound contribution to the literature on labor history. Sandelowski is philosophically acute, especially when she explores the nature of human/machine interactions. Readers who are interested in gender studies will also be fascinated by this exploration of gender and technological change.""--Ruth Schwartz Cowan, State University of New York at Stony Brook ""Margarete Sandelowski's latest book, ###Devices and Desires#, continues her groundbreaking scholarship on technology and its relationships with nursing and the care of patients. Sandelowski employs the perspective of time to illuminate her themes of the 'promise and paradox' of technology and caregiving. This book is a must read for all concerned with competent, compassionate care and for all who hope to better understand the world we work and live in.""--Joan E. Lynaugh, University of Pennsylvania"

"This brilliant book shows just how much the 'charitable, devotional and altruistic' image of the nurse conceals.

"Nation""

Margarete Sandelowski's latest book, "Devices and Desires," continues her groundbreaking scholarship on technology and its relationships with nursing and the care of patients. (Joan E. Lynaugh, University of Pennsylvania)

This elegantly written book is one of the best histories of nursing available today. (Ruth Schwartz Cowan, State University of New York at Stony Brook)