ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Frontier Nursing Service

Hello there! Do you know what nursing is? It's when a person takes care of other people who are sick or need help. The Frontier Nursing Service is a special type of nursing service that started a long time ago in the mountains of eastern Kentucky in the United States.

Back then, there were many people who lived in very remote areas and didn't have easy access to doctors or hospitals. So, the Frontier Nursing Service was started to help these people by sending nurses on horses to reach them. Yes, you heard that right, on horses!

These nurses were called "nurse-midwives," and they had special training to help women with their babies. They would ride to the homes of women who were pregnant or just had a baby and help them take care of their little one.

The Frontier Nursing Service was founded by a woman named Mary Breckinridge, who cared deeply about helping others. She believed that everyone should have access to healthcare no matter where they lived. Since there were no roads or cars in some of these remote areas, she figured that horses were the best way to help people.

Over time, the Frontier Nursing Service grew and became more modern. It started to use cars and even airplanes to help people in need. Today, it still exists and helps many people in rural areas who have difficulty accessing healthcare.

So, in summary, the Frontier Nursing Service is a special kind of nursing service that sends nurses on horses, cars, and sometimes airplanes to help people in remote areas who don't have easy access to doctors or hospitals. They help women with their babies and care for people who are sick. Mary Breckinridge started it a long time ago because she cared about helping others.