Florence Nightingale -- Nursing Theorist
The pioneering healthcare services that Florence Nightingale performed during 1854 Crimean War in Europe is today recognized as the beginning of the organized and sanitary field of nursing. This paper follows the career of Nightingale and recognizes her contribution to the theory of nursing care -- and the development of nursing training -- for the ill and the injured.
The Progression of Florence Nightingale's Career
From Financial Comfort to Rebellion
Born into a wealthy family with parents that expected her to do the things young ladies did in the 19th century -- to occupy herself with "embroidery, playing the piano and painting" -- Nightingale nonetheless resisted those callings and carved out her own career. Instead of falling into the comfort of what rich people did in that era in Europe, Nightingale resisted and rebelled. From the time she could think and dream about what her life should be Nightingale believed that her passion to help others and to do morally uplifting deeds would supersede the pretensions that her wealthy family had planned for her. After telling her parents...
In 1858, Louis Pasteur identified germs, proving that diseases did not 'spontaneously' arise as nightingale thought (Atwell, 1998). However, it was Nightingale that began work as to the conditions that promoted the growth of germs, but she would not know this for many years. The Crimean War: Putting Theory Into Practice When the Crimean War broke out, she began work at once in a British hospital. Her emphasis was placed on
In the Crimean War, she arranged for the physical set-up of the patients' beds, the discarding of the infested and soiled linens and the ensuring of good and maintained ventilation. After the War, she advocated for social reforms, one of which was the review of the British Poor Laws. The recall of this Law initiated its amendment into the Hardy's Bill on 1867. This bill looked into the state of
Nursing Today VI. Conclusion A. The Call to Vocation B. The Influences: Before and After C. Nursing, Feminism, Service, and the Male Ego Reference List Bloy, M. (2010). Florence Nightingale. The Victorian Web. Retrieved from http://www.victorianweb.org/history/crimea/florrie.html This site gives a good history of Nightingale, her service, and the impact she had on nursing. Collected Works of Florence Nightingale. Wilfrid Laurier University Press. Retrieved from http://www.wlupress.wlu.ca/Series/CWFN.shtml A great source of information for all the written works of
But Florence Nightingale was not intimidated by the attitude of the military officers and she decided to fight with all weapons: she contacted the Times and reported the situation in army hospitals, thus forcing the British Army to reorganize their hospitals. Her contribution to the military hospitals paid off when, by improving the quality of sanitation, the number of dead patients was reduced considerably. Florence Nightingale was a strong supporter of
Nightingale Florence Nightingale and Environment Theory According to most nursing historians, Florence Nightingale is the leading figure in the development of modern nursing. As an early innovator in the field, Nightingale would pioneer many of the ideologies and approach which are still in circulation today. In particular, nursing professionals in her wake would coin the term Environment Theory in order to describe the mode of care that would be her contribution to
Nurses should show the patients pictures and entertain them this way. Care, to Nightingale, means thinking of the patient's needs and desires for things to do and to be entertained. Taking Food: The nurse must supply a patient's every need, including the food that brings recovery to the body. She is in favor of hot tea and something to eat every three hours. But she advises never to leave food
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