Advance Foundation of Nursing

Submitted by:
Teresa A. dela Cruz, RN

1.) What are the important events that lead to the development of nursing as a profession? Nursings history has influenced the way profession is recognized by the public. These were the significant images of the nurse in the past. The folk image, the religious image, and the servant image. The Dark Ages of Nursing occurred during the Reformation, when only those individuals who could not find other employment cared for the ill. Florence Nightingale had a significant impact on the form and direction of nursing and established it as respected field of endeavor. Many of her precepts are still a part of nursing. During times when the United States was at war, the serious need for trained nurses to care for the sick and wounded became a public concern. Early nursing schools were developed in the United States for the purpose of nursing service as much as for educating young women. The programs were rigorous; often a 7day workweek consisted of 14-hour workdays. Nursing organizations, the forerunners of todays associations, began to emerge towards the end of the 19th century as the pioneers of early nursing saw the need for change in nursing education and nursing practice. Acute care hospitals have a history reaching back into the ancient past. Advances in medical science, the development of medical technology, changes in medical education, the growth of health insurance industry, government involvement, and the emergence of professional nursing all affected the development of modern hospitals. Long-term care facilities have histories similar to that of acute care hospitals; both often started as facilities to house the poor and indigent. Todays nursing homes provide specialized care to elderly or disabled and rehabilitation services to others. 2.) What are the negative and positive views about nursing in the different periods? Basing from these views, what were its influences to the changes in the nursing practice, education and research. Nursing is for men and women who attended to the young, injured, and aging members of society. Nurses are attendants were noted to have read stories, chanted songs, played musical instruments, and conversed with the sick while attending to their needs. The role of the nurse was to minister (serve) to the sick, poor, and homeless.

 Nursing was seen as proper penance (self-mortification) for past sins. For women, it was also seen as a freedom from distasteful arranged marriages and a way to do gratifying (satisfying) work. Dickens portrayed a nurse as a woman who endured because of lack of other social opportunities. His character, Sairy Gamp, was a drunk, unkempt, and uncaring woman who profited off the sick and dying. The nurse-angel archetype developed; knowledgeable, strong, forceful, and compassionate. Nurses were portrayed as subservient to physicians, stern, rigid, and uncaring. Nurses are knowledgeable and non-judgmental care giver. Things one can do as a nurse to improve the image of nursing: Wear a nursing uniform and adhere to the dress policy; it is there to create a professional image of nursing, one that says take me seriously and my work is important Be visible and speak out; take part in professional nursing organizations and public health forums. Safeguard the image of nursing in the media. 3.) What do you think are the practices during the past that is being utilized in todays era? Sewer systems, clean water through aqueducts, and central heating Irreproachable (respectful) behavior cared for injured soldiers; cleaning and bandaging wounds, feeding, and comforting. Practiced hygiene, bandaging, bloodletting, and leeching (withdrawal). 4.) Analyze the current status of nursing discipline by comparing it with the past History of Nursing. Nursing is as old as the need is for those who will dedicate their time to taking care of the infirm and dying. As a calling, the roots of nursing go far back into antiquity. Nursing practice is based on forged experiential knowledge that has been refined through ones practice geared towards the provision of human service. It is also based on dynamic theoretical foundations that are constantly being evaluated to further understand human nature and the environment of care. Yesterdays Nurses were actually educated and trained by the physicians themselves. They learned nursing in the field, with real patients and real life situations. When the physicians felt they had sufficient training, these nurses were put into practice. They were very fortunate to

have hands on, real world training. In contrast, Todays Nurses are taught mostly by nurses. The bulk of their educational setting consists of mundane classrooms, filled with books and simulated situations. Todays Nurses are taught what is referred to as Ivory Tower book nursing, meaning what is ideal, not what is real. The next major difference is the conditions under which each of these professionals practice. Today, the profession has evolved to embrace evidence based practice in different nursing specialties. The race for magnet designation for nursing excellence has begun. This recognition uplifts the nursing profession to the degree that it has never been done before. New technologies arise from nurses learning to adapt and improve nursing practice. Using their expertise, nurses also look for opportunities to improve efficiency in nursing practice. The more efficient the nurse, the more satisfied the client. Besides, the nurse has learned to overcome some of the overwhelming activities that oftentimes lead to burn out. This progress in nursing profession will ultimately lead to a nurse-friendly environment, thus improving nursing staff satisfaction and nursing staff retention as well. 5.) Being a registered nurse, what makes you proud of your profession? Nursing is not for everyone. It takes a very strong, intelligent, and compassionate person to take on the ills of the world with passion and purpose and work to maintain the health and well-being of the planet. No wonder we're exhausted at the end of the day! When I think about all the patients and their loved ones that I have worked with over the years, I know most of them don't remember me nor I them. But I do know that I gave a little piece of myself to each of them and they to me and those threads make up the beautiful tapestry in my mind that is my career in nursing. Nurses always need to be on top of their game and make sure that their patients are clearly understood by everyone else. A truly stellar nurse is able to advocate for her patients and anticipate their needs. Nursing is a stressful job where traumatic situations are common. The ability to accept suffering and death without letting it get personal is crucial. Some days can seem like non-stop gloom and doom. They are able to feel compassion and provide comfort. Patients look to nurses as their advocates the softer side of hospital bureaucracy. A great nurse pays excellent attention to detail and is careful not to skip steps or make errors. From reading a patients chart correctly to remembering the nuances of a delicate case, theres nothing that should be left to chance in nursing. Staying on their feet, keeping their head cool in a crisis, and a calm attitude are great qualities in a nurse. Nursing is an art: and if it is to be made an art, it requires an exclusive devotion as hard a preparation, as any painter's or sculptor's work; for what is the having to do with dead canvas or dead marble, compared with having to do with the living body, the temple of God's spirit? It is one of the Fine Arts: I had almost said the finest of Fine Arts. Therefore, no words can define how I feel about my profession. I am proud to be a nurse!