[The role of nursing in the development of public health in Spain (1923-1935): the public health nurse].

In this research we analyze the process of institutionalization of Public Health Nursing in Spain during the period 1923-1935. Socialization programs are first studied, within the framework of the National School of Child Care (1926) and the National School of Health (1933), as well as the agreement on postgraduate training abroad signed with the Rockefeller Foundation (1931). Secondly, we analyze the professional activities carried out by these nurses, and the organizational efforts of this collective, which led specifically to the foundation of the Public Health Nursing Association in 1934. Our findings bring to light the process of sociological definition, as a specialized sector within nursing practice, attained by the professional activity of public health nursing, and illustrate the influence of this profession on the improvement of public health in Spain.