Nightingale said, “The very first requirement in a hospital is that it should do the sick no harm”. The history of nursing initially begins with Florence Nightingale. Before her era nurses had a tarnished reputation (Glasper, 2017). They were poorly educated and incompetent people. Nurses such as Mrs. Bedford Fenwick wanted to change the image of nursing. They did this by leading a campaign for professionalism. Which led to the culminated Nurse Bill receiving is royal assent in December 1919 (Glasper, 2017). July 27, 1921 was the official opening of the nursing register, there are currently 688,927 nurses registered with the Nursing Midwifery Council (NMC) (Glasper, 2017). The NMC code has four themes of professionalism, “Prioritizing …show more content…
Nightingale had the power and was in the right position to establish modern nursing (Stein 1998). Nightingale said, “Let us never consider ourselves as finished nurses…we must be learning all our lives”. In the years of 1860 through 1899 the Unites States laid the groundwork for nursing. Following England’s format, the school of nursing would remain separate from the hospital, so that the educational needs would be kept separate from patient needs. The first doctoral program for nursing was instituted at the university of Pittsburg in 1954 (Stein 1998). In today’s society, the education and learning of nurses consist of programs, offerings, and independent studies in order to broaden a nurse’s ability (Stein 1998). The education required to become a register nurse today is, a Bachelor in science degree along with a nursing degree. How did average citizens view nurses in the past? How do average citizens view nurses now? The typical nurse in the past was viewed as a woman wearing a white hat, white shirt, and bottoms and a person who only cared and comforted someone, and did not have much work to do. People viewed nurses as, having poor working conditions, shift work and a limited level of autonomy. Nurses work was seen as caring for and helping patients, being considered inferior than doctors. What these people don’t realize is the number of educational
Florence Nightingale was an immense impact on nursing, who “became famous for her revolutionary work as a nurse during the Crimean War” (Kent 30). “She dedicated her life to improving conditions in hospitals, beginning in an army hospital during the Crimean War,” (3 Registered). Her actions were then used by “concerned individuals, rather than by professionally trained nurses” during the Civil War, (Registered 279). Many of Nightingale’s ideas were brought into modern times, but with the improvement of technology and licensed nurses. With the influence and patience of Florence Nightingale, nursing has evolved into an outstanding career.
A professional is characterized by or conforming to the technical or ethical standards of a profession (2) : exhibiting a courteous, conscientious, and generally businesslike manner in the workplace. Being professional should be a subconscious effort in the fact that it should always be applied. When employees are professional it helps the system run more efficiently and safely. A person must me a certain criteria when being evaluated on professionalism, a person is judged based on the clients; Attitude, Values, Communication techniques, and approachability. Clients who display a committed, dependable attitude will benefit more from work exerted, and overall be rewarded with incentives. Although professionalism may be in the eye of the
(2004) stated that, “motivation is a fire from within. If someone else tries to light that fire under
Nursing is an occupation in which professionalism (or lack thereof) can have a significant effect on not only patients and their health, but the nurse’s relationships with colleagues, patients’ families and even their community. A nurse must exemplify professionalism, especially in an environment that creates increased risk for loss of life or further injury. There are many aspects that are involved with professionalism in nursing, and many expectations set up on the nurse.
Professionalism is a very important key in the nursing profession. It is what paints a good image for a business or, in this case, an organization, people will most likely choose the professional organization over the unprofessional, because with the nurses that are professional they have great quality in customer service. Examples being, nurses that are professional aren’t rude or disruptive, they handle business in a kindly manner, following directions and policies etc. Unprofessionalism in nursing practice continues to hinder the expansion of the field. There are many things that nurses do that are highly unprofessional at the workplace. A few major unprofessional mistakes nurses tend to do is, bullying, breaking HIPPA, and behavior. To me, these are the biggest mistakes that really pop out at me.
Professionalism in nursing is a key component to have. The nurse that exhibits professionalism can go far in a career. As nurses identify strengths and weaknesses, careers can change for the better. The strengths that I see in myself are optimism, good listener, and quick learner. When I think about who I am as a nurse, I don’t focus on tasks and to do lists. Although skills are important for patient care, there are psychosocial aspects that should be addressed.
The practical role of a ‘nurse’ has dated back to the beginning of time. Although, lacking formal training until the mid-1800’s, the role of ‘care taker ' for the sick and hungry has been filled by many. Formal nursing training has changed the care takers role over many centuries to making a professional level of nursing care and education. Registered nurses (RN) were the first licensed nurses (in 1860). In 1892 the Young Women’s Christian Association in New
What comes to the mind when we think of nurses - Someone who takes care of sick people. Nursing was introduced by Florence Nightangle in the mid of 1800’s and she took an opportunity to train women to care of wounded and sick army during the war. Back then nurses were trained to perform all the housekeeping skills. In 1900’s, there was no set of formal classes for nursing student as compared to today’s higher education. They were assigned to work for 10-12 hours without pay under the supervision of a physician. There is a huge difference between today’s and 1900’s nursing education. Nurses are more trained and skilled in their profession and today’s nursing considered to be more professional than 1900’s nursing.
In a highly respected profession such as nursing, professionalism is an important element to staying employed and setting one’s self apart from the rest of the applicants when competing for a potential job. By definition professionalism are the qualities and traits that describe a professional. While knowledge is crucial in any profession, according to an article published by the University of Kansas (2012), “all medical professionals must strive to retain those humanistic qualities integrity, respect, and compassion that constitute the essence of professionalism.” Whether you work in a hospital or administration these three qualities encompass the core of nursing and exemplify what it means to be a professional.
Nurses should achieve higher levels of education and training through an improved education system that promotes seamless academic
A professional nurse is one who puts the needs and importance of patient care above all others. While striving for professionalism, nurses need compassion, patience, empathy, strong moral and ethics, accountability and the commitment to always act in the best interest of their patients. Nurses are held accountable for providing quality, safe, and effective nursing care (Hood, 2014). A professional nurse has the responsibility to continually improve and implement nursing standards while maintaining integrity by involving themselves in various tasks. Regular involvement in reading professional literature and sharing of evidence- based research with other healthcare personal helps increase knowledge and skills. This nursing ability can be used to encourage the actions of others in the healthcare team resulting in improved patient care. Nurses should encourage each other to become involved in hospital committees, provide an environment to encourage the discussions of ethical dilemmas, promote professional growth of nurses to voice their concerns and share viewpoints to address issues. “A professional nurse should expect to commit to a life of continuous learning growth and development”. (Hood, 2014, pp. 29). Nurses choose this profession to help others. As professional nurses we must maintain our ethics, values, characteristics, and commitment to drive our profession forward (CCN, 2015). Nurses must be autonomous, accountable, and be able to delegate to unlicensed assistive personnel. Being autonomous as a nurse means having control over their practice (Hood, 2014). It allows a nurse to take risks while being held accountable for ones’ actions (Hood, 2014).
The combination of professionalism and ethics can be equated with an extraordinary nurse because they are core components in the nursing profession and crucial to patient trust, confidence and wellbeing. Having a degree in nursing is not what makes one a professional. Professionalism is
St. Thomas Hospital was the world´s first nursing school opened in London in July 1860. Today it is part of the King’s College, where nursing students are called Nightingales. The school, like modern nursing itself, was established by Florence Nightingale, who revolutionized nursing during the Crimean War. When prospective nurses complete their training, they take the “Nightingale Pledge,” as a reflection of her ongoing impact on nursing.
Throughout Notes on Nursing, Florence Nightingale expresses the importance of proper care to patients. Another factor of nursing that was effected by Nightingale is the professionalism of nursing and how nursing is not only a science, but an art. Nightingale states how numerous subjects in nursing should be improved upon. The specific chapters that show how Nightingale has improved nursing within Notes on Nursing were Light, Personal Cleanliness, Chattering Hopes and Advices, and Ventilation and Warming. In chapter 9, Light, Florence Nightingale emphasizes the impact of sunlight on the patient and how it improves their health. Personal cleanliness was reviewed in chapter 11. Nightingale explores the importance cleanliness has on a patient. Within chapter 12, Nightingale states how to properly advise the sick, as well as give hope to patients. In chapter 1, Ventilation and Warming, Nightingale states the need for pure air within a patient’s room. These chapters express the importance of properly taking care of patients. The focus of this paper is how it was applied during Nightingale’s time and how it is still relevant today in nursing practice. The chapters within Notes on Nursing have had a profound impact on the practice of nursing today.
Theory and practice are said to go hand in hand. Theory is shaped based on practice and insight, while it also gives shape and foundation to practice. Florence Nightingale is acknowledged as the founder of modern nursing and a theorist. She believed in the patient’s capacity for self-healing which is reinforced by the nurse’s ability to create an environment conducive to health (Smith &Parker, 2015, p. 50). Her philosophy of nursing is that one should put the patient in the best position for nature to act on him or her. This paper will identify the five essential components of her theory to draw out an appropriate plan of care for Mrs. Adams in the case study. In addition, discuss the applicability of Nightingale’s