Invalid Cooking at Adelaide Hospital

One unique aspect of nursing training at Adelaide Hospital was the focus on cooking for invalid patients. This essential part of the curriculum was designed to equip probationer nurses with the knowledge and techniques needed to prepare nourishing meals for those recovering from illness or injury. Classes were held at the South Australian School of Mines and Industries, making it a unique blend of practical care and culinary education.

School of Mines, Ca 1908. Courtesy State Library of South Australia

Until the introduction of intravenous feeding in the 1960s, invalid cookery was considered an important skill for all Adelaide Hospital trained nurses. Despite being monotonous and unexciting, the task of preparing food and feeding patients consumed a considerable portion of a nurse’s daily responsibilities.

Invalid food was typically provided to patients with chronic conditions or those on the mend from surgery or injury. Restoring full health was a challenging task during that time, even with the best medical care. Many nursing texts and household cookery books were dedicated to the subject, emphasizing the importance of proper nourishment in aiding patients’ recovery. One notable excerpt from Mary A. Boland’s A Handbook of Invalid Cooking (1893) states,

The work of the nurse is to care for her patient, to watch, to tend and to nurture him in such a way that he shall gain and maintain sufficient strength to overcome disease, that he may finally be restored to a state of health. Her greatest allies in this work consist in the in the proper hygienic surroundings of good air, warmth, cleanliness and proper nourishment.

A Handbook of Invalid cooking by Mary A Boland 1893

The typical guidance provided in these books often emphasised the need for frequent, small meals, recommending against asking patients for their preferences. The focus was on gentle, easy-to-digest foods, steering clear of rich dishes heavy in fats and seasonings.

Adelaide Hospital first introduced invalid cooking classes in 1902. The syllabus included the preparation of barley water, toast water, white wine whey, junket, beef tea, chicken broth, meat, fish, poultry, custard, eggs, jellies, brains and sweetbread.

The probationer nurses undertook this study at the School of Mines and Industries, which as adjacent to the hospital and west of Frome Road,. The Hospital Board covered the fees for the course, which ran for three months, with nurses attending once a week. In later years, potential probationer nurses were permitted to start their Invalid Cookery classes while waiting to be called up as a nurse, but most did their training in their first year.

School of Mines & Industries Invalid Cookery Examination Paper, 1921. Belonging to Dorothy Hesba Clements.

If we were doing Cooking, which we did at the School of Mines, that was always when you were on Night Duty. You had to drag yourself out of bed at 2 o-clock, and you then did the Cooking Exam on your night off.

Betty Bradwell nee Pyman, Oral History. Betty graduated from Adelaide Hospital in 1937
Adelaide Hospital Probationer Nurses, School of Mines & Industries, Ca 1920.

The practice of administering food intravenously started to develop in the 1950s and 60s with the creation of a successful total nutrition solution for intravenous administration. By the mid-1960s, Royal Adelaide Hospital had stopped offering Invalid Cooking classes as part of their nursing education. This marked a significant shift in the approach to patient nutrition and care.

Written by Margot Way, CALHN Health Museum

Information sourced from Trove, CALHN Health Museum collection, and other online sources.  Copies of all newspaper articles and other relevant documents are available on request).