Florence Nightingale was a true pioneer for the nursing world. There
is a lot of wonderful and informative nursing history to be learned,
and it all serves as a good building block for others who are in the
field of nursing today. Nightingale’s book, “Notes on Nursing” is an
integral part of nursing history, and is still a guide for many people
who want to become a nurse today. In the 1800s, nursing did not just
consist of treating patients. The nurses were also responsible for
cleaning and sweeping the hospital rooms and hallway, as well as making
sure the ward had a comfortable temperature. This was often done by
adding coal to the furnaces or opening all of the windows. An
interesting part of nursing history that many people don’t know is that
nurses were required to put away part of their pay each week in order
to provide a sort of nest egg for themselves when they got older and
needed their own medical care.
Integrity was and
still is a very important part of nursing history. Ethics and how a
nurse carried him or herself was considered to be an integral part of
her job status. For nurses who drank alcohol or smoked, the head nurse
was often given cause to suspect her of being less than fit for the
job. Originally nurses were there to serve as a comfort to patients.
Today, they are so much more and can often help to diagnose illnesses,
and administer treatment. They are also a wonderful connection for the
patient between themselves and their doctor. Courage was a very
important part of nursing history, and nurses provided a sense of
security to their patients, and they still do the same today. Thanks to
a rich and storied history of nursing and the nursing industry, today’s
nurses are stronger, better equipped, and more educated than ever
before.