infirmier

from infirmer (1288), a compound formed on the word infirm, itself derived from the Latin in-firmus, "who is not firm, morally as well as physically". Taking care of the infirm was originally largely considered a feminine task, then, from the 12th century, the religious orders organized the profession according to criteria of charity and love of God: voluntary care was taken over by the religious structure, for example the nuns of the Hôtel-Dieu, the nobles caring in hospital foundations, or certain brothers and sisters traveling at home. Nursing will then evolve with the history of medicine and the philosophy of science to become a paramedical profession, "it is also the most comforting smile of the hospital".