Margaret Sanger: An Image Of Today's Nurses

Margaret Sanger was a controversial and historical nurse. She lived during a time of revolutionary change when the women’s rights movement was in full motion. Born in 1879, to a large impoverished family, she was the sixth of eleven children. Sanger was part of a family of devoted Catholics. During that time it was a common practice for women to birth as many children as possible. As a result, she was a witness to the effects of diseases, miscarriages, and multiple pregnancies that eventually led to her mother’s premature death. This had a significant impact on her ideologies. She eventually became known for advocating women’s reproductive rights and founding what is now known as Planned Parenthood.

I. Introduction. There are many remarkable personalities in our history, which made revolutionary changes in women’s lives. Two of them were Margaret Sanger and Eleanor Roosevelt. They contributed immensely to change the women’s fates and lives and to position them equally with men. Margaret Sanger was born in 1879, in Corning, New York; she was sixth of eleven children of Michel Higgins, an Irish Catholic stonecutter, and religious Anne Purcell Higgins. Her mother went through eighteen pregnancies and died at the age of forty-eight. She studied nursing in White Plains and worked as nurse in one of the poorest neighborhood of New York. In 1902 Margaret Sanger married architect and radical William Sanger. She didn’t finish her studying. Margaret gave birth to three children. In 1912 Sanger’s family moved to Manhattan. All her life Margaret Sanger was a courageous, dedicated and persistent American birth control activist, advocate of eugenics, and the founder of the American Birth Control League. She was first woman opening the way to universal access to birth control.

The Motion picture film, “Sentimental Women Need Not Apply”, highlighted that the first group of nursing students were all white women (1988). Black women were unwelcomed in some nursing schools hence nursing schools were establish for colored people only (Gary & Hott, 1988). One nurse shared that the lack of black doctors rendered black nurses as the sole healthcare providers in some communities. After years of speaking out against segregation, any capable human, regardless of race or gender can now become a nurse. In the 21st century both men and women of all cultures are welcome to becoming a nurse. Though nursing remains a female dominated profession, the gap between male and female nurses has narrowed. In 1970, three percent of nurses were males compared to ten percent in 2013 (Tanner,

Although African-Americans represent the largest minority group, studies show they have the lowest success rates in nursing programs. According to the AACN (2013), “African-American nursing students have the lowest graduation rate when compared to other minority groups”. The lack of minorities providing care negatively effects healthcare outcomes and accessibility. In order to increase the number of African-Americans nurses practicing, it is essential to gain an understanding of the conditions that lead to successes and failures. The purpose of this study is to provide insight into the positive and negative experiences had by African-American nursing students, for development of appropriate interventions to increase the number of successful graduates.

“ The Glass Escalator” discusses the intertwining of race and gender combine to shape experiences for minority men in the culturally feminized field of nursing and discovers that upward advancements that may be offered to women may not be offered to a man in a dominated woman’s work field. “The perception that men are not really suited to do women’s work also contributes to the glass escalator effect.” It is interesting that there are specific ideals in the work field on what a man and a woman can handle. Doctors are

Margaret Sanger founded a movement in this country that would institute such a change in the course of our biological history that it is still debated today. Described by some as a "radiant rebel", Sanger pioneered the birth control movement in the United States at a time when Victorian hypocrisy and oppression through moral standards were at their highest. Working her way up from a nurse in New York's poor Lower East Side to the head of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Margaret Sanger was unwavering in her dedication to the movement that would eventually result in lower infant mortality rates and better living conditions for the impoverished. But, because of the way that her political

Having gone through the hardships that she did, Margaret Sanger developed her own theories and beliefs about health in women. Through the

Margaret Sanger was a New York based nurse and sex educator who became very influential during the Progressive Era. Sanger attributed her mother’s inability to recover from tuberculosis to several miscarriages and childbirths that she experienced. As a practicing nurse serving several poor immigrant women, she also witnessed problems, many births or illegal abortions caused.

Margaret Sanger, a birth control activist. Born on September 14, 1879 Sanger was one of eleven children born (National Women’s History Museum). Other than the children born, Sanger’s mother had seven miscarriages (National Women’s History Museum). Sanger’s family lived in poverty as Sanger’s father preferred to drink and talk politics than keep a steady job (National Women’s History Museum). When Sanger was 19 Sanger’s mother died of Tuberculosis (National Women’s History Museum). Over

Sanger was first exposed to the deep fundamentals of politics when she moved with her new husband to Manhattan. At this time, this area was known to have unconventional social habits and unorthodox opinions. As a result, the couple became engaged in a world of radical politics which started her interest as a supporter of the Women’s Committee of the New York Socialist Party and the Liberal Club. She also became involved in the Industrial Workers of the World union, and participated in a number of strikes. She became a firm supporter in controversial issues such as human rights and equality especially when it pertained to women and their health. Sanger debut her first lecture about women’s health when she was asked to fill in for a speaker scheduled

In the last twenty years, the rising number of disparities in health and healthcare has increased simultaneously with the influx of minorities within the population (Baldwin, 2003) A4. As the size of an ethnically diverse population steadily continues to increase, so will the level of complexities of patients’ health needs, which nurses and other healthcare staff will be expected to address (Black, 2008) A1. The issue of racial, ethnic and health disparities for minorities exists for several complex reasons, however, even with this being widely known, very little action has been taken to try and correct it (Baldwin, 2003) A4. Research findings suggest that without actively implementing cultural diversity within the healthcare workforce, quality in healthcare will decline while health disparities continue to rise (Lowe & Archibald, 2009) A3. So although the shortage of nursing staff should be a high-priority for change in the U.S., the need for more registered nurses with racially

Just as she had been affected by the death of her mother, so was she affected by this. She vowed to provide information to women about contraception.

The nursing profession is comprised of a diverse population, particularly one that spans across several generations.

I took the time today to read the article titled “What is Race” by Victor M. Fernandez, RN, BSN and found myself agreeably intrigued and in admiration of his thoughts regarding race. Victor touched on an extremely insightful and significant topic; one that most people have sturdy opinions about. Race – what is it? What does this mean to you? What does it mean to our upcoming careers in the nursing field? I trust that how we characterize and assess our awareness of race is due exclusively to how we were raised. I do not mean merely what we were taught from our family or culture about race, but to a certain extent how we have lived it, and how it has lived around us. “Race is a modern idea. Ancient societies, like the Greeks, did not divide

The seeds of nursing must be planted in the heads, hearts and minds of youth. Seeing one’s self as a nurse, or a reflection of who you are in a nurse role, is important as children develop ideas about what they want to be when they grow up. To impact the rural nursing shortage long term, more young people must consider a career in nursing, especially those from rural settings. In order to influence those decisions, children must see themselves as nurses, which means men, women, Native Americans, African-Americans, Asian-Americans and other ethnic backgrounds. Marketing will play a vital role in messaging that incorporates diversity in all local and regional marketing for every campaign. Electronic messaging holds even more significance, as every generation going forward will be more tech savvy and see fewer barriers between ages, races, and preferences (Pew Research Center, 2010). Using local employees from diverse backgrounds in these campaigns emphasizes the facility’s commitment to maintain and enhance diversity, but also provides the right imagery to youngsters considering health care, nursing specifically, as a career.