This paper examines the range of people employed in the nursing profession and the factors that have shaped modern nursing practice. Beginning with the historical roots of nursing as a caregiving role tied to domestic responsibilities, the paper traces how improvements in education, administration, and regulation have expanded nursing employment. It identifies and describes several specialized nursing roles — including public health, occupational, maternal and infant, pediatric, in-home, mental health, critical care, and palliative care nurses — and explains how these specializations contribute to safe, quality patient care across a variety of healthcare settings.
As compared to nursing practices in previous years, the profession is much different today, with the expectation of ongoing change for the benefit of both patients and nurses. The nursing characteristics and values are considered to have begun at home because of their similarity with the traditional responsibilities of daughters, sisters, wives, and mothers. The traditional nursing role has usually incorporated humanistic support, nurture, comfort, and caring (Limon, 2007). This role of traditional nursing care was mainly associated with physical maintenance and comfort. While women were the majority in the early development of the nursing profession, they were not the only people providing nursing services. Though they were the minority, men also provided nursing services, particularly through caring for their injured and sick comrades.
The development of the nursing profession to include the employment of various people has mainly been influenced by improvements in administration, education, and practices in this field. This reflects the need for nurses to identify and respond to a myriad of new demands arising from an ever-changing and increasingly complex healthcare system. The profession has also come to employ a variety of people because of numerous new regulations and accreditation processes. Modern nursing employment practices require increased accountability, professional standards, and financial priorities for both nurse leaders and direct care nurses (Swihart, 2009).
The drive for improved standards enables employees in this profession to obtain and maintain competencies in developing areas of practice, as well as to ensure safe and quality patient care. The profession has also expanded to employ a variety of people because of the increasing changes and growing divides in patient care needs within contemporary political and societal healthcare environments.
"Overview of eight distinct nursing specialties"
"Workforce diversity improves care quality and delivery"
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