Scope and Contents
The papers document the professional careers of Florence and Henry Wald, pioneers in the hospice movement. The collection includes records documenting the founding, planning, and inception of Hospice, Inc., the first hospice program in the United States. The Hospice, Inc. records also provide particularly useful documentation of an example of a community based institution that relied on grass-roots support for its development and administration. Meticulous notes and other documentation Wald kept during the groundbreaking research, "A Nurse's Study of Care for Dying Papers," comprise another substantive part of the collection. Other papers include collected materials from several local, national, and international hospice groups, which document the integral role Wald and Hospice Inc. played within the broader context of the hospice movement. Writings of the Walds, and a small amount of material regarding the Yale University School of Nursing round out the collection.
Dates
- 1955-2003
Creator
Conditions Governing Access
The papers are open to research with the following exceptions.
Patient information in Box 29 is restricted until January 1, 2050.
To access this Series V, researchers must sign the Access Agreement for the Florence Wald Notebooks (MS 1659, Series V), which states: "I agree to preserve the confidentiality of the individuals documented in these records. I will refrain from making any disclosure that would identify any person as the subject of these records. No names or other information making possible the specific identification of an individual will be used in any formal or informal oral presentation or conversation, nor in any teaching exercise, nor in any disseminated product that results from my research. I understand that failure to comply with this agreement may result in legal proceedings being initiated against me. In such a case, I agree to hold harmless and to indemnify Yale University, its officers, agents, or employees, for any loss or damage to them, including any associated legal fees."
Patient information in Box 29 is restricted until January 1, 2050.
To access this Series V, researchers must sign the Access Agreement for the Florence Wald Notebooks (MS 1659, Series V), which states: "I agree to preserve the confidentiality of the individuals documented in these records. I will refrain from making any disclosure that would identify any person as the subject of these records. No names or other information making possible the specific identification of an individual will be used in any formal or informal oral presentation or conversation, nor in any teaching exercise, nor in any disseminated product that results from my research. I understand that failure to comply with this agreement may result in legal proceedings being initiated against me. In such a case, I agree to hold harmless and to indemnify Yale University, its officers, agents, or employees, for any loss or damage to them, including any associated legal fees."
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright for unpublished materials authored or otherwise produced by Florence and Henry Wald has been transferred to Yale University. These materials may be used for non-commercial purposes without seeking permission from Yale University as the copyright holder. For other uses of these materials, please contact mssa.assist@yale.edu.
Copyright status for other collection materials is unknown. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.
Copyright status for other collection materials is unknown. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.
Photoreproduction of materials in Series V and Resticted Files is prohibited.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Florence and Henry Wald, 1994. Gift of Florence Wald, 2001. Gift of Monica Mills, 2005.
Arrangement
Arranged in five series and two additions: I. Hospice, Inc. Files, 1968-1979. II. Hospice Movement Subject Files, 1963-1980. III. Yale School of Nursing Files, 1956-1979. IV. Writings, 1955-1979. V. Research Notebooks, 1969-1971.
Extent
18 Linear Feet (and 1.75 Gigabytes)
Language of Materials
English
Catalog Record
A record for this collection is available in Orbis, the Yale University Library catalog
Persistent URL
Overview
The papers document the professional careers of Florence and Henry Wald, pioneers in the hospice movement. The collection includes records documenting the founding, planning, and inception of Hospice, Inc., the first hospice program in the United States. The Hospice, Inc. records also provide particularly useful documentation of an example of a community based institution that relied on grass roots support for its development and administration. Meticulous notes and other documentation Wald kept during the groundbreaking research, "A Nurse's Study of Care for Dying Papers," comprise another substantive part of the collection. Other papers include collected materials from several local, national, and international hospice groups, which document the integral role Wald and Hospice Inc. played within the broader context of the hospice movement. Writings of the Walds, and a small amount of material regarding the Yale University School of Nursing round out the collection.
Biographical / Historical
Born on April 19, 1917, in New York City, Florence Wald became a pioneer and a leading voice in the development of hospice care in the United States. Wald obtained a B.A. from Mount Holyoke College in 1938, an M.N. from the Yale University School of Nursing in 1941, and an M.S. from the Yale University Graduate School in 1956. From 1941 to 1943, she served as a staff nurse for the New York Visiting Nurse Service, from 1946 to 1952 she was a research assistant at the College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York City, and from 1955 to 1957, she was an instructor at Rutgers University School of Nursing. In 1957, Wald became a faculty member in the Yale University School of Nursing, where she has served as Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, Research Associate, Dean, and Clinical Professor.
In 1963, Wald met Cicely Saunders, the founder of the hospice movement in Great Britain and the director of St. Christopher's Hospice in London. During the second half of the 1960s, Wald and Saunders met several times in England and the United States and began to explore and conceptualize the possibilities of bringing hospice care to America. In late 1968, Wald began a two year grant supported study of dying patients. She set up an interdisciplinary team of health care providers and a spiritual advisor to care for the terminally ill. In exchange for care, the patients allowed the research team to keep notes to be used in determining the viability of developing an on-going hospice care program. The research developed into the beginning of institutionalized hospice care in the United States, and at the completion of the study, the group formed Hospice, Inc. and began planning a program and facility to provide hospice care in the New Haven area.
Florence Wald served on the Board of Directors and the planning staff for Hospice, Inc. until 1975, when she resigned due to internal conflicts. Upon her resignation, Wald was formally acknowledged as the Founder of Hospice, Inc. Wald continued to be an advocate for the hospice movement through publications, conference presentations, and consultant work, while she returned to teaching in the Yale School of Nursing. She participated in many national and international research groups within the hospice movement, most notably the International Work Group on Death, Dying, and Bereavement. Wald is the recipient of many honors, including honorary doctorates from Mount Holyoke College and the University of Bridgeport School of Nursing, the Founders Award from the National Hospice Organization, and the Contribution to Hospice Award from the National Association of Home Care. In 1998, she was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame.
As one of the original incorporators, Henry Wald also played a critical role in the founding of Hospice, Inc. He served as a member of the Board of Directors until 1977, and chaired the Building and Site Committee. As an architect and engineer who specialized in the design of health care facilities, he was instrumental in developing the facility of Hospice, Inc. in Branford, CT. Wald's 1971 thesis for his masters degree from the Columbia University School of Architecture, "A Hospice for Terminally Ill Patients," became a widely consulted source on the design of hospice care facilities. Henry Wald died on December 22, 2000. Florence Wald died on November 8, 2008, in her home in Branford, Connecticut.
In 1963, Wald met Cicely Saunders, the founder of the hospice movement in Great Britain and the director of St. Christopher's Hospice in London. During the second half of the 1960s, Wald and Saunders met several times in England and the United States and began to explore and conceptualize the possibilities of bringing hospice care to America. In late 1968, Wald began a two year grant supported study of dying patients. She set up an interdisciplinary team of health care providers and a spiritual advisor to care for the terminally ill. In exchange for care, the patients allowed the research team to keep notes to be used in determining the viability of developing an on-going hospice care program. The research developed into the beginning of institutionalized hospice care in the United States, and at the completion of the study, the group formed Hospice, Inc. and began planning a program and facility to provide hospice care in the New Haven area.
Florence Wald served on the Board of Directors and the planning staff for Hospice, Inc. until 1975, when she resigned due to internal conflicts. Upon her resignation, Wald was formally acknowledged as the Founder of Hospice, Inc. Wald continued to be an advocate for the hospice movement through publications, conference presentations, and consultant work, while she returned to teaching in the Yale School of Nursing. She participated in many national and international research groups within the hospice movement, most notably the International Work Group on Death, Dying, and Bereavement. Wald is the recipient of many honors, including honorary doctorates from Mount Holyoke College and the University of Bridgeport School of Nursing, the Founders Award from the National Hospice Organization, and the Contribution to Hospice Award from the National Association of Home Care. In 1998, she was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame.
As one of the original incorporators, Henry Wald also played a critical role in the founding of Hospice, Inc. He served as a member of the Board of Directors until 1977, and chaired the Building and Site Committee. As an architect and engineer who specialized in the design of health care facilities, he was instrumental in developing the facility of Hospice, Inc. in Branford, CT. Wald's 1971 thesis for his masters degree from the Columbia University School of Architecture, "A Hospice for Terminally Ill Patients," became a widely consulted source on the design of hospice care facilities. Henry Wald died on December 22, 2000. Florence Wald died on November 8, 2008, in her home in Branford, Connecticut.
- Title
- Guide to the Florence and Henry Wald Papers
- Status
- Under Revision
- Author
- compiled by Tom Hyry
- Date
- February 1998
- Description rules
- Finding Aid Created In Accordance With Manuscripts And Archives Processing Manual
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English.
Part of the Manuscripts and Archives Repository
Contact:
Yale University Library
P.O. Box 208240
New Haven CT 06520-8240 US
(203) 432-1735
(203) 432-7441 (Fax)
beinecke.library@yale.edu
Yale University Library
P.O. Box 208240
New Haven CT 06520-8240 US
(203) 432-1735
(203) 432-7441 (Fax)
beinecke.library@yale.edu
Location
Sterling Memorial Library
Room 147
120 High Street
New Haven, CT 06511