Kanho Kyokwaseo (Textbook of Nursing), the First Published Korean Nursing Books / 한국간호교육학회지

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to extend the knowledge about two volumes of Kanho Kyokwaseo (Textbook of Nursing) published in 1908 and 1910. METHODS: The books were investigated from the first to the last pages and compared with other textbooks published during the same period. RESULTS: The origin of these books was from Hubinyaoshu (Manual of Nursing) published in China in 1904. They were translated by Edmunds, a missionary nurse from America, and Chang Chai-Sun, a teacher at the first nursing school in Korea, along with inspection by Korean teachers who were fluent in English. Kanho Kyokwaseo are user-friendly textbooks in that they are written mainly in Hangul; Chinese and English are added in cases of explicating western scientific terminology and medical terminology, with notes at the top, on the left, and on the right of the page. The contents emphasize reporting and submission to supervisors and doctors. Surgical nursing occupies the largest chapter. Disinfection and hygiene, the advantages of western modern medicine, are dealt with repeatedly and importantly. CONCLUSION: Kanho Kyokwaseo was widely used as the first and only nursing textbook published before Japanese occupation and as a publication having upgraded the level of textbooks.