Dienstvorschrift: Schwesternvorschrift – Roles and Admission to the DRK

The regular nurse, or Schwester, is the best known and most common nursing role within the DRK-Schwesternschaft. But, it wasn’t the only one. The Schwesternschaft offered several types of roles, from students to retirees, and this post will explore each of those roles as they are described in the Dienstvorschrift: Schwesternvorschrift. It will also look into some of the requirements for getting admitted into the DRK-Schwesternschaft.

Lernschwester

One of the responsibilities of the DRK motherhouses was to train up new nurses for the Schwesternschaft, so it only makes sense that the first position listed is the student nurse, or Lernschwester. There are many requirements for being accepted as a student nurse. Applicants were expected to have “good education and completed schooling, as well as character, mental, and physical aptitude.” Anyone between the ages of 18 and 34 could apply, although women as young as 17 could be accepted in exceptional cases. There was also a list of required information to provide, which included:

  • A birth certificate
  • Proof of German ancestry
  • A handwritten resume
  • Certificate of school completion
  • Proof of completed work in the labor service
  • Any certificates of previous completed work
  • For minors, consent of a legal guardian
  • For widows, the death certificate of the husband
  • For divorcees, the certificate of divorce
  • A medical and dental certificate
  • Two references, one of which had to be a party member
  • A declaration of obligation (a form included in the Dienstvorschrift, basically saying that the applicant had read the DRK regulations)
  • 2 ID pictures

Along with these items, the applicant would be examined by the nurse’s doctor at the motherhouse to assess their physical ability. This examination would take precedence over the required medical certificate.

The Oberschwester of the motherhouse was responsible for reviewing all the documents and deciding if the applicant would be accepted. A denial was required if the applicant was not German or Volksdeutsche (ethnically German), if they had a criminal record, if they did not have a sufficient political certificate, or if the medical examination was not satisfactory. The Oberschwester could also deny the application for other reasons, but had to note the reason and let the applicant know what it was.

If the application was satisfactory, the candidate would be accepted on a trial basis that lasted six months. During this time, the student nurse was allowed to withdraw with a 14 day notice. After successfully completing the trial period, the Lernschwester would receive a Personalausweis (ID card) and a student-marked service brooch. (The regulations may be referring to brooch “G” in this image).

Schwester im praktischen Jahr

According to a law passed in 1938, a nursing license was only valid with the completion of one year of employment in a hospital. Nurses during this year were referred to as “Schwester im praktischen Jahr,” or “nurse in the practical year.” These nurses wore the same brooches as “Probeschwestern” (probationary nurses), and had the same Peronalausweis as student nurses. After completing this practical year of work, nurses could continue working as Probeschwestern (probationary nurses). 

Probeschwester

Nurses who had completed their practical year after training with the DRK, and nurses who trained outside of the DRK, could work under the DRK as a probationary nurse, or Probeschwester, while they waited for final admission to the DRK-Schwesternschaft. The accepted age for final admissions was up to 34 years old, and applicants had to have a certificate of completion for their practical year and their nursing license, which means they had to have passed the nursing exams. The probationary period was one year long, and at the end, the Probeschwester had to be medically examined and x-rayed. After a successful medical examination and one year on probation, the Probeschwester would finally be admitted to the DRK-Schwesternschaft.

The Probeschwester would use the Personalausweis of a student nurse, and wear the “Probeschwester” service brooch (see brooch “F” in this image).

Schwester

When finally admitted to the DRK-Schwesternschaft, the nurse was required to swear an oath to the Führer. As an official “Schwester,” the nurse would receive the DRK Personalausweis and the nurse’s service badge. (There are several brooches worn by nurses during WWII. Examples include brooches “A,” “B,” and “C,” in this image).

Hilfschwester

There are several specialty roles for nurses within the DRK, starting with the Hilfschwester, or auxiliary nurse. Fully licensed nurses, both DRK trained and otherwise, who were not members of the DRK-Schwesternschaft, could work under the DRK without being accepted into the organization. As Hilfschwestern, the nurses were not required to be in constant service with the DRK. But they were required to respond to drafting into military service (as nurses for the Wehrmacht, Luftschutz, or other official services). They were also required to work for their motherhouse for at least four weeks every two years. While working for the DRK, the Hilfschwester was required to wear the DRK uniform, but was not allowed to wear it otherwise. They wore service brooches marked with “Hilfschwester.” (See brooch “E” in this image). 

Reserveschwester

Nurses who became civil servants could enter “reserve status” as Reserveschwestern. As a Reserveschwester, the nurse remained a member at their motherhouse, and had the right to attend events there. She was required to contribute the equivalent of 1% of her salary to her motherhouse to maintain her membership, and waived any retirement benefits through the DRK. Most interesting, the Dienstvorschrift notes here that the service brooch is provided by the motherhouse and remains it’s property, suggesting that the Reserveschwester did not keep her service brooch.

Fachschwester

Nurses with relevant professional qualifications or training as DRK-Helferinnen (assistants) could be admitted as Fachschwestern, or specialist nurses.Examples are given as office nurses or business nurses, but the meaning of these terms is not clear. 

Bereitschaftsschwester

Former DRK (or otherwise) nurses who left nursing for various reason could make themselves available to the DRK as Bereitschaftsschwester, or stand-by nurses. Specifically, marriage is listed as an appropriate reason for a DRK nurse to have left. The only other requirement given is that they could not be members of any other nursing organization. (See an example of a Bereitschaftsschwester service brooch,  brooch “D” in this image).

Summary

A DRK nurse could fill one of many roles, from Lernschswester to Probeschwester to just Schwester, or in specialty cases the Hilfschwester or Bereitschaftsschwester. Understanding these roles can help provide a better understanding of how the DRK-Schwesternschaft functioned. In the end, however, the ordinary Schwester would have been the most common and most essential member of the Schwesternschaft. The next post will look into what kinds of training and education the DRK Schwestern received.

See all the Dienstvorshchrift:Schwesternvorschrift Posts Here!

Previous: Organization

Next: Education, Coming Soon!

German Glossary:  

  • Bereitschaftsschwester – stand-by nurse
  • Dienstvorschrift – service regulations
  • Fachschwester – specialty nurse
  • Helferin/Helferinnen – assistant/assistants
  • Hilfsschwester – auxiliary nurse
  • Lernschwester – student nurse
  • Luftschutz – the German civilian defense group
  • Oberschwester – head nurse / matron
  • Personalausweis – ID card
  • Probeschwester – probationary nurse
  • Reserveschwester – reserve nurse
  • Schwester/Schwestern – nurse/nurses
  • Schwester im praktischen Jahr – nurse in the practical year
  • Schwesternschaft – nurse’s sisterhood/organization
  • Schwesternvorschrift – nurse’s regulations
  • Volksdeutsche – ethnically German
  • Wehrmacht – the German army

References:

Dienstvorschrift für das Deutsche Rote Kreuz: Schwesternvorschrift. 1940.

“Gesetz zur Ordnung der Krankenpflege.” Reichsgesetzblatt, Teil 1, 1938, pp. 1309-1320. ALEX Historische Rechts- und Gesetzestexte Online, http://alex.onb.ac.at/cgi-content/alex?aid=dra&datum=1938&page=1487&size=45. Accessed 11 Aug. 2019.

Dienstvorschrift: Schwesternvorschrift – Organization

The DRK-Schwesternschaft was tasked with providing trained and certified nurses to the medical services of the German army, to the Luftschutz (or anti-aircraft defense), for support during official states of emergency, and for the general health of the public (Dienstvorschrift, p. 5). To carry out this responsibility, the DRK-Schwesternschaft had an organization that reached up to the highest levels of the government, which is what today’s post is all about: how was the DRK-Schwesternschaft organized?

As an organization, the DRK was unified, by law, into a single entity in 1937. The various clubs and societies that had been operating loosely under the Red Cross name were now a single organization (“Gesetz,” p. 1330). This single organization included the DRK-Schwesternschaft, which means at the very top, all orders for the DRK-Schwesternschaft  and DRK Schwestern came from the Presidium (or headquarters) of the DRK. The Presidium was led by a female leader, or Generaloberin, and a male doctor (Dienstvorschrift, p. 28). During the war, the DRK Generaloberin was Luise von Oertzen, a member of the NSDAP who completed her training as a nurse in 1920, and became leader of the DRK in 1935. The doctor and president of the DRK was Ernst-Robert Grawitz, a physician and high-ranking SS officer. This is the level where broad decisions about the DRK were made, such as how many nurses were needed for medical service, and where they should be sent.

Ernst-Robert Grawitz greets a group of Red Cross women, who were enrolled in a school for DRK leaders.
Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-E02586 / CC-BY-SA 3.0

Going down a level, the DRK was divided up into several districts, corresponding to the military districts of the Wehrmacht (Zroka, p. 109). These districts were arranged geographically, with the headquarters in one of the major cities of the district. For example, Wehrkreis III was headquartered in Berlin, and Wehrkreis VII was based around Munich (“Wehrkreise”). Within these districts, the DRK-Landesführer, or district leader, oversaw financial issues of the Schwesternschaft within the district. The logistics of assigning and directing nurses within a district for Wehrmacht and Luftschutz service fell to the “Inspectors of the DRK,” or district commissioners (Dienstvorschrift, p. 28). Because financial and logistic matters were controlled by the district, individual motherhouses had less independence than they may have had traditionally, although this did help keep the entire DRK-Schwesternschaft more cohesive (Zroka, p. 110).

A map showing the different Wehrkreise

These motherhouses would have been the most important part of the DRK organization to individual nurses. Each motherhouse, or Mutterhaus, was its own nursing sisterhood, which provided training, education, work, support, and organization to its members. It provided other benefits, such as care and insurance if a nurse fell ill, or retirement assistance once they were too old to work (Dienstvorschrift, p. 5). It was also a form of community for the nurses, who may have felt a strong loyalty to their motherhouse.

Each motherhouse was led by an Oberin, basically a mother superior or “head nurse” (Dienstvorschrift, p. 6). The Oberin had to be approved by the president of the DRK (from above, Ernst-Robert Grawitz) and the Reichsfrauenführerin (Gertrud Scholtz-Klink, head of the NS-Frauenschaft) after a one year long test period. During this test period, the potential Oberin remained a member nurse of her previous motherhouse. Once appointed, the Oberin had responsiblities including (Dienstvorschrift, pp. 25-26):

  • deciding who could be a member of the sisterhood
  • overseeing the education of nurses within the sisterhood
  • determining job assignments for students and nurses
  • (with agreement from the chairperson (Vorsitzende)) dismissing students and nurses

The motherhouse chairperson led the motherhouse along with the Oberin (Dienstvorschrift, p. 6). They also had to be appointed by the DRK president, and had to swear loyalty to Hitler. Unlike the Oberin, who oversaw most internal affairs, the chairperson was an external representative (Dienstvorschrift, p. 26). They also led a governing board that supported the general operations of the motherhouse. This board consisted of:

  • the chairperson
  • the Oberin
  • the doctor who oversaw the nurses
  • a treasurer
  • a legal adviser
  • a woman who had experience with the DRK
  • three other people

All members had to be appointed by the district leader, and approved by the chairperson and the Oberin. This board was required to meet at least twice a year, and would advise the motherhouse on any difficult issues. The treasurer also had the extra duty of overseeing the motherhouse finances and budget, and no money could be spent without his approval (Dienstvorschrift, pp. 26-27).

This covers the general organization of the DRK-Schwesternschaft. The nurses were members of motherhouses, each led by an Oberin, that provided them with education, work assignments, and a sense of community. These motherhouses were managed at a district level, and in turn by the Presidium of the DRK. But on a daily basis, these nurses would have dealt directly with their motherhouse and their Oberin.

Speaking of individual nurses, in the next post, we will look even closer at the different types of DRK nurses, and their roles within the Schwesternschaft.

See all the Dienstvorshchrift: Schwesternvorschrift Posts Here!

Previous: Introduction

Next: Roles and Admission

German Glossary:  

  • Dienstvorschrift – service regulations
  • Generaloberin – the highest female leader, Superior General
  • Landesführer – district leader
  • Luftschutz – the air raid/civilian defense group in Germany during WWII
  • Mutterhaus – motherhouse, an individual nursing sisterhood
  • NS-Frauenschaft – the Nazi women’s league
  • Oberin – Head nurse, leader of a motherhouse
  • Reichsfrauenführerin – Reich’s women’s leader, throughout the war filled by Gertrud Scholtz-Klink
  • Schwestern – nurses
  • Schwesternschaft – Nurses’ Sisterhood
  • Vorsitzende – chairperson
  • Wehrkreis – military district

References:

Dienstvorschrift für das Deutsche Rote Kreuz: Schwesternvorschrift. 1940.

“Die Wehrkreise im Deutschen Reich.” Lexicon der Wehrmacht. http://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/Gliederungen/Wehrkreise/Gliederung.htm. Accessed 25 May. 2019.

“Gesetz über das Deutsche Rote Kreuz.” Reichsgesetzblatt, Teil 1, 1937, pp. 1330-1332. ALEX Historische Rechts- und Gesetzestexte Online, http://alex.onb.ac.at/cgi-content/alex?aid=dra&datum=1937&page=1436&size=45. Accessed 25 May. 2019.

Zroka, Amy Liane. “Serving the Volksgemeinschaft: German Red Cross Nurses in the Second World War.” eScholarship. University of California, San Diego, 2015, https://escholarship.org/uc/item/88m8c64r. Accessed 25 May. 2019.

Dienstvorschrift: Schwesternvorschrift – Introduction

The Dienstvorschrift: Schwesternvorschrift

Dienstvorschrift für das Deutsche Rote Kreuz: Schwesternvorschrift​ may be a small book, but it packs in a huge amount of information about DRK nurses. Over the next few weeks, this series of posts will explore the main sections of this book, and examine how to apply this knowledge to improve a DRK nurse impression.

The ​Dienstvorschrift​ was the service regulations for DRK nurses, and describes everything from the purpose of the DRK, how to get admitted, what payment could be earned, to what uniform to wear. For the DRK, there are actually two editions of the ​Dienstvorschrift​. The first, likely published around 1939, deals with the official DRK organization and “helpers,” both male and female. This edition covered DRK Helferinnen, who often worked as nursing assistants as well as in other roles, but were not certified nurses. The second edition dealt with the DRK-Schwesternschaft, or those who were certified nurses. This series of posts will cover only the second edition for the nurses, as noted by the term “Schwesternvorschrift,” or “nurse’s regulations” in the title. It is important not to assume that any of this information applies to the DRK Helferinnen, because they had their own separate organization and regulations.

Published in 1940, ​Dienstvorschrift: Schwesternvorschrift​ covers 18 sections:

  • Duties (of the DRK-Schwesternschaft)
  • The Motherhouse
  • Members
  • Admission
  • Education and Training
  • Rules
  • Payment
  • Leisure and Holiday
  • Awards (after 10 and 25 years)
  • Leaving the Schwesternschaft
  • Retirement
  • Membership to Party Organizations
  • Head of the Schwesternschaft
  • Governing Board
  • Leadership and Personnel Files
  • Concerns of Members
  • Superior Departments
  • Uniform Regulations

There are also several forms at the back of the book, as well as an excerpt of the “Law on Nursing” that was passed in 1939 and regulated the nursing profession. Instead of a word-for-word translation, this series will focus on a set of more general topics described in the above sections. Some of the sections are very short, don’t apply well to reenacting, or were too difficult to translate legibly. However, if anyone has a question about a section that does not get covered by the end of this series, please reach out and I will do my best to answer!

Before the series really kicks off, there are a few important points to keep in mind. First, as mentioned above, this information only applies to nurses, not to the assistants. In the US especially, there seems to be some confusion over the difference between these two roles, possibly because we use the term “nurse” much more loosely than the Germans did in the 40s. But they are not the same, and this series is focused only on the nurses. Second, these regulations were published in 1940, and it is very possible they could have been modified later on during the war. For example, maybe a triangle badge was later no longer required on the uniform, or the length of training may have been shortened. While I will do my best to discuss any changes I know of, it is good to keep in mind that things could have changed in the four or five years before the end of the war.

With those conditions out of the way, it is time to get into the research! In the next post, we will explore how the DRK-Schwesternschaft was organized.

A couple of surprises found tucked in the last pages of the Dienstvorschrift translated for this series

All Dienstvorschrift: Schwesternvorschrift Posts

German Glossary:  

  • Dienstvorschrift – service regulations
  • Für das Deutsche Rote Kreuz – for the German Red Cross
  • Helferinnen – (female) assistants
  • Schwestern – nurses
  • Schwesternschaft – roughly, nursing sisterhood (or in other words, a professional group or order that nurses could join)
  • Schwesternvorschrift – nurses’ regulations

References:

Dienstvorschrift für das Deutsche Rote Kreuz: Schwesternvorschrift. 1940.

Welcome!

Welcome to Beyond Blanks! Focused on WWII reenacting, specifically DRK and Soviet impressions, this is part personal blog, part research compilation. I have a lot of ideas of things to write about, so stay tuned!

About Me

I have been reenacting since June of 2017. My husband first introduced me to the hobby, but this has quickly become a passion of my own! My first impression is a DRK Helferin, which I portray with the Feldlazarett 400 unit in Midwest USA. I am also expanding this impression to include a DRK Schwestern in 2019. My second impression, which I started in early 2018, is a Soviet combat medic with the unit 50th Rifle Division. I’d also like to add an American WWII-era impression in the future, but for now, these two impressions give me enough to research.

I grew up in Virginia, and was lucky to be able to visit historical sites like George Washington’s birthplace frequently. I always enjoyed seeing the hard work of the living historians at those sites as they brought that history to life. Now that I live in the Midwest, reenacting has given me an opportunity to participate in portraying history. It combines some of my favorite things: research, acting, and at some events, sharing what I’ve learned with other people. I enjoy getting to do what I saw and admired others do when I was younger.

Outside of reenacting, I work as an engineer. I’m not a historian, but I do believe that having both a specific understanding of my chosen impressions, as well as broad understanding of the historical context, is absolutely essential for quality reenacting. And this blog is my way of capturing my thoughts and working on improving that understanding. Hopefully, through this, we can all learn something new!