Interview with Gertrude C. Bluemel, August 24, 2002

Partial Transcript: So tell me how did you come to go to the Frontier Nursing Service?

Segment Synopsis: Gertrude Bluemel talks about how she learned about the Frontier Nursing Service and when she started classes at FNS. She notes that she worked for FNS for two weeks after she finished her education with them.

Keywords: Medical service; Medical services; Midwife; Midwifery--Education.; healthcare; FNS

Subjects: Medical education.; Midwifery; Midwives; Nurses; Nursing; Rural nurses; Rural nursing; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.

Partial Transcript: Tell me about what your typical cases were like.

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel notes what the education consisted of and then talks about making home visits. She talks about the lifestyle of FNS nurses. She compares the experiences of a hospital birth and a homebirth, noting what kinds of exams they did on the patient. She details the procedures and methods they used during childbirth.

Keywords: Appalachia; Eastern kentucky; Homebirth; KY; Medical services; Midwife; Southern Appalachia; healthcare; FNS

Subjects: Education; Kentucky; Medical education.; Midwifery; Midwives; Nurses; Nursing; Rural; Rural nurses; Rural nursing; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.

Partial Transcript: We did have a number of rather interesting deliveries.

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel details some of the most memorable deliveries from her time with FNS. She discusses delivering twins, breech births, and more. She notes her instructors ability to use these memorable births as teaching moments.

Keywords: Breech births; Childbirth; Deliveries; FNS; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Medical services; Midwifery; Midwifery services; Midwives; Nurses; Rural nurses; Healthcare

Partial Transcript: Well, it was very similar to what they are now except that she didn't get a lot of medication.

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel talks about what a typical delivery in the hospital was like. She notes the similarity of these births to homebirths. She describes how they examined the placenta after births in the hospital. She details certain conditions they looked for and kept tabs on during hospital births.

Keywords: Childbirth; FNS; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Home births; Hospital births; Hospitals; Medical services; Midwifery; Midwives; Nurses; Rural nurses; Healthcare

Partial Transcript: What kind of positions did the moms usually, um, give birth in?

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel details the methods used for childbirth, noting positioning, comfort, and procedures. She notes that one of the most important things for the FNS was the mothers comfort and relaxation during the birth.

Keywords: Childbirth; FNS; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Homebirths; KY; Leslie County (Ky.); Medical services; Midwifery; Midwives; Nurses; Healthcare

Partial Transcript: Some deliveries we preferred they would be in the hospital.

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel notes how they would proceed if there were complications with the delivery. She notes that most births were normal and had no complications. She mentions that the weather and conditions of the homes could cause complications when performing a homebirth.

Keywords: Childbirth; Complications; FNS; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Home births; KY; Leslie County (Ky.); Medical services; Midwifery; Midwives; Pregnancy complications; Rural nurses; Healthcare

Partial Transcript: How would you describe a typical compliant patient?

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel describes what births were like with compliant patients. She notes that many mothers were quiet during the birth, and discusses preferences for home or hospital births.

Keywords: Childbirth; Compliance; Compliant patients; FNS; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Home births; Hospital births; KY; Kentucky; Leslie County (Ky.); Medical services; Midwifery; Midwives; Nurses; Rural nurses; Healthcare

Partial Transcript: So, um, how would you descri--describe a typical noncompliant patient?

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel describes what a typical noncompliant patient was like, and provides examples.

Keywords: Childbirth; FNS; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Medical services; Midwifery; Midwives; Noncompliance; Noncompliant; Nurses; Patients; Healthcare

Partial Transcript: What other kinds of healthcare might you do?

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel talks about other healthcare services they could provide. She then talks about some of the most memorable cases throughout her time with FNS, and mentions the excitement of travelling to the patients' homes. She talks about the first delivery she ever saw, and her experience with episiotomies.

Keywords: Appalachia; Childbirth; Episiotomies; FNS; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Medical services; Midwifery services; Midwives; Rural healthcare; Rural nurses; Healthcare

Partial Transcript: What were the doctor's procedures in the hospitals?

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel talks about her experiences with hospital births prior to becoming a midwife. She notes the procedures involved, and then talks about procedures and equipment used by the FNS nurses. She compares this with procedures from when she was in India.

Keywords: Appalachia; Childbirth; Doctors; FNS; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Medical procedures; Medical services; Medical supplies.; Midwifery; Midwives; Nurses; Healthcare

Partial Transcript: What kind of transportation did you have?

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel talks about transportation during her time with FNS, and how she drove a jeep to get to patients. She mentions the difficulties of navigating the area, especially with regards to houses deep in the forest. She emphasizes the importance of outpost clinics on learning the layout of an area.

Keywords: FNS; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Jeeps; Medical services; Midwife; Midwifery; Midwives; Outpost clinics; Rural life; Rural nurses; Rural transportation; Transportation; Healthcare

Partial Transcript: So, what was your relationship like with the clients or with the people you were serving in the area?

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel discusses her pleasant relationship with her clients, and how they were usually happy to see the FNS nurses. She reflects on the financial situations of some of the people there.

Keywords: Appalachia; Childbirth; FNS; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; KY; Kentucky; Leslie County (Ky.); Medical services; Midwifery; Midwives; Poverty; Rural life; Healthcare

Partial Transcript: So, what were the healthcare options for people in Eastern Kentucky? Other than FNS, what kind of healthcare options did they have?

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel notes healthcare options that were available to the people in Eastern KY other than FNS. She talks about encountering bootleggers in the area and what that was like.

Keywords: Bootlegging; Eastern Kentucky; FNS; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Healthcare; KY; Leslie County (Ky.); Leslie County (Ky.); Medical services; Rural healthcare; Southern Appalachia; Appalachia

Partial Transcript: So, what types of home remedies did you encounter people using?

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel discusses home remedies from the area, noting the use of herbs. She mentions some remedies that she still uses, and compares these to home remedies her family used growing up.

Keywords: Folk medicine; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Healthcare; Herbal medicine; Herbal teas.; Herbs; Home remedies; Nurses; Nurses; Rural life; Rural medicine; FNS

Partial Transcript: So, what are the positives of Frontier Nursing Service?

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel talks about the positives of FNS, noting that there was a need for healthcare services in the area. She mentions the importance of healthcare in poverty stricken areas, and that most doctors avoided the area because the terrain was difficult and they were less likely to make money.

Keywords: Doctors; FNS; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Healthcare; Hyden (Ky.); KY; Kentucky; Leslie County (Ky.); Medical services; Nurses; Rural life; Rural nurses; Southern Appalachia; Appalachia

Partial Transcript: What are the negatives of Frontier Nursing Service?

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel discusses what she thinks are some of the negatives within FNS, especially the change in education from a more hands-on experience to digital coursework. She mentions some negatives from when she worked for FNS, including her struggled with the farm work, and mentions some issues with authority within the service.

Keywords: Breckinridge, Mary, 1881-1965.; Digital education; Farm work; Farms; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Healthcare; Healthcare personnel.; Healthcare professionals; Hyden (Ky.); KY; Leslie County (Ky.); Leslie County (Ky.); Mary Breckinridge; Medical services; Nurse Breckinridge; Rural nurses; FNS

Partial Transcript: How did, uh, how did FNS impact women's healthcare and health options?

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel talks about the impact FNS had on women's healthcare in the area. She mentions helping through both healthcare services and health education.

Keywords: FNS; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Medical services; Nurses; Rural nurses; Women's health; Women's healthcare; Healthcare

Partial Transcript: They always treated us decently.

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel talks about the reception of FNS in the area, noting the friendliness of the community. She mentions that she didn't have much contact with the higher ups in FNS, but that there was tension involving them. She discusses what interactions were like with donors to FNS and the upper class.

Keywords: FNS; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Healthcare; Hyden (Ky.); KY; Leslie County (Ky.); Medical services; Midwifery; Midwives; Nurses; Rural healthcare; Southern Appalachia; Appalachia

Partial Transcript: So, when you were there at FNS did you know of any practicing granny women or lay midwives?

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel says that while at FNS she didn't know any lay midwives, but she mentions teaching about them during her time as a maternity professor. She describes lay midwifery and the ways she taught her students about maternity care.

Keywords: Hyden (Ky.); Kentucky; Lay midwives; Leslie County (Ky.); Maternity care; Maternity professors; Midwifery; Midwives; Nurses; Rural healthcare; Rural life; Granny midwives

Partial Transcript: What were, um, what were the women doing in Eastern Kentucky?

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel explains the role of women in Eastern KY, especially with regards to housework, childcare, and church-related service. She says that local women primarily dealt with the problems of day-to-day life.

Keywords: Appalachian women; Appalachians; Childcare; Eastern Kentucky; Housework; Hyden (Ky.); KY; Leslie County (Ky.); Rural life; Southern Appalachia; Appalachia

Partial Transcript: So, why did you decide to become a nurse midwife?

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel talks about why she became a nurse midwife. She emphasizes her difficulty in becoming a midwife missionary. She mentions FNS being the only midwifery school that she knew of at the time and her interest in the program. She notes her family's connection to healthcare and her ancestry.

Keywords: Ancestors; FNS; Frontier Nursing Service, Inc.; Medical services; Midwifery; Midwives; Missionaries; Nurse midwives; Nurses; Rural nurses; Healthcare

Partial Transcript: Where did you go to school?

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel details her education and work experience. She mentions volunteering for the Red Cross and her acceptance into university. She notes going to the FNS for their midwifery program while in her 50s. She describes her teaching and missionary experience over the years.

Keywords: Medical education.; Medical services; Midwife; Midwifery; Midwifery--Education.; Midwives; Missionaries; Missions; Nursing education; Red Cross.; Teachers; Healthcare

Partial Transcript: Do you, do you mind if I ask about your religious affiliation?

Segment Synopsis: Bluemel mentions her religious affiliation and her connection to missionary work through the Lutheran Church, but notes that her religion wasn't connected to her career as a nurse. She talks about her engagement with the community and her social life. She mentions her daughter that she adopted from Nigeria.

Keywords: Adoption; Churches; Community involvement; Lutheran Church.; Lutheran missionary; Lutherans; Midwifery; Midwifery; Missionaries; Missionary work; Nigeria; Religion; Community engagement.