In her illuminating publication, ” Notes on Nursing: What It Is and What It Is Not,” Florence Nightingale clarifies states that her intent was not to impart knowledge or prescribe strict rules for nursing because she was of the opinion she believed that “the very elements of nursing are all but unknown.” Instead, her goal is to “give hints for thought to women who have personal charge of the health of others.”
When she wrote this article, the majority of females in England had to look after for someone at one point throughout their lives. If not the spouse or the child of the patient an domestic servant was expected to be assigned the duties which were limited to “administration of medicines and the application of poultices.”
Nightingale considered all illnesses to be restorative and required specific conditions in order to return patients to a healthier level of health. The vision of Nightingale’s nursing was to place her patients into the ideal situation to allow this to happen naturally. Nursing was her vision of the profession of clinical practice it is currently: research-based, completely involved in the treatment of patients and equally important to the roles of doctors.
We’re not too far from the incidents that proved the life-saving value of the nursing theory developed by Nightingale applied in practice. In the wake of the mortality rate of 42% and the reports of the gruesome conditions of hospitals in the British hospital for soldiers in Scutari and Scutari, the desperate British army leaders sought Nightingale’s aid. She emphasized creating an environment that was healingt that was constantly monitoring of patients, and giving them a healthy diet. Within six months of her arrival and her taking over the responsibility of treating patients who were wounded, the rate of death decreased to 2percent.
The Critical Role of Nursing
Her efforts throughout the Crimean War verified to a happy world the vital role that nursing can perform in taking care of patients and helping to save lives. Nurses were asked to go beyond symptoms of patients to prevent causality. She made hygiene, cleanliness and healthy eating non-negotiable obligations. She also clarified any confusion by separating the role of the doctor and nurses. She stated “The surgeon may save the patient’s life, but the nurse teaches the patient how to live.”
The past season COVID-19 has accomplished for nurses the same thing that was done to nurses during the Crimean War did in the mid-1800s. Their actions during the mid-19th century were deemed heroic, and so are the actions of front-line nurses of today, in the 21st century.
The unprecedented difficulties of this epidemic have allowed us to discover the purpose and importance of nursing. It is imperative that we understand the importance of nursing and how we intuitively recognize that the empathy and compassion of nurses and her experience and expertise are essential for us to get through our pain. Additionally, our demands as well as expectations is that the nurses be by our side to provide comfort and support. Nurses are the ones we trust, admire and find hope in the midst of despair.
We are today protected and taken care of by the professionals who are the descendants from Florence Nightingale. Nursing professionals have advanced their work above the expectations of Nightingale could have imagined but not to the extent that Nightingale believed was possible.
Nursing Pioneers & Visionaries
Through time, remarkable nurses have faced the responsibility of taking care of the sick. The profession itself evolved from the instinctual caring which is the foundation of nursing. Here are some of the many nurses who were the first to make significant advancements in the area of nursing.
Florence Nightingale (1820 – 1910) Considered the founder of modern nursing. The model of nursing was developed by her research in the form of a statistician. She also set specific architectural standards for the design of hospitals to today. She invents nurses call lights, defined the nursing administration role and established the standards for patient-centered healthcare. She also founded her the Nightingale School of Nursing in London in St. Thomas Hospital, the first school that was secular in nursing.
Clara (Clarissa) Barton (1821 – 1912) Founded the American Red Cross in 1881. In the Civil War, she volunteered as a nurse, and fought the battlefield to provide care to wounded soldiers. In addition, she fought for wounded soldiers and made sure they received their entitlements.
Mary Eliza Mahoney (1845 1926) The first African American woman who became registered nurses. The first to establish the Colored Graduate Nurses Association which eventually joined together with the American Nurses Association.
Lillian Wald (1867 – 1940) Pioneered public health nursing in the US. Lillian Wald. She was instrumental in establishing three important organisations in the US The National Organization for Public Health Nursing and the National Women’s Trade Union League as well as the Children’s Bureau.
Hazel. Johnson Brown (1927 to 2011) The first African American female general of the US Army, and Chief of the Army Nurse Corps. Her appointment also included an Associate Dean of the Walter Reed Army Institute School of Nursing.
Jean Watson (1940 – currently) Dr. Watson created Caring Science as well as Caring Science and The Science of Human Caring as an innovative model for nursing today. In the latter part of the 1980s she created the first doctorate in clinical practice that was the ND and was the precursor to the present DNP program. She has been awarded distinctions as a doctor in honor from various institutions across the globe and also the highly coveted Lifetime Legend distinction awarded by the American Academy of Nursing in 2013. The nurse is also the creator of the Watson Caring Science Institute.
I would like to invite you to include your name on this list and recognize nurses who played a crucial role in helping to fight the COVID-19 epidemic and the nurses in your community who have made an impact on the lives of those they affect.
