2 Other historical figures in the development of modern professional nursing

Besides Florence Nightingale (1820-1910)

There are other pioneers in our history of the nursing profession that are also worth mention.

We have Florence Nightingale and we still have her tenants of care in our practice.  The thoughts she embraced and threaded throughout her practice still guide us today.http://Karimi, H., & Masoudi Alavi, N. (2015). Florence Nightingale: The Mother of Nursing. Nursing and midwifery studies, 4(2), e29475. https://doi.org/10.17795/nmsjournal29475

She talks about confidentiality in patient care and protecting the patient.  Building trust by being honest and trustworthy and conveying respect to the patient. Observation, this is part of our core duties as nurses to observe the patient, the situation and being vigilant to any issues that may develop and protect patients. Florence feels that nurses need to be able to communicate effectively and therapeutically and use varied teaching methodologies to ensure our patient understands vital information.. We also need to make sure the patients have a clean environment with fresh air and adequate hydration and healthy food for healing.

The next nurse pioneer is Mary Nutting (1858-1948), who was a student of Florence’s.. She  is credited as the individual that drafted the very first draft of a nurse practice act. She also was instrumental in getting  nursing as a profession into  the University. Columbia university being the very first in the country to have a higher degree with a nursing major. In 1944 she was the first recipient of an award that bore her name for her lifetime of achievement from the National League of Nursing (NLN). She also authored several books of nursing theory and practice which we use yet today!

https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/mary-adelaide-nutting

The next nurse we mention in the professional development role was Clara Barton (1821-1912). She risked her life during the American Civil War in 1861 to bring supplies to soldiers in the field and she is credited for the formation of the American Red Cross and its humanistic mission to provide for those who need care, regardless of who they are and what country or religion or race they are. https://www.redcross.org/about-us/who-we-are/history/clara-barton.html

Lastly but certainly not least is Lillian Wald (1867-1949)https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/lillian-wald who dedicated her life to serving the low income, mostly Jewish immigrants and destitute population in the lower east side of New York. She founded the “Henry Street Settlement” where she provided room and board for young women who were training to be nurses and worked with this population under the direction of Lillian. She was the first “public health nurse” and her work was very much similar to what Florence Nightingale did years ago. She was a huge advocate for the rights and fair treatment of women and children. She fought for women to have the right to birth control and was instrumental in forming the US Children’s Bureau of affairs’ and the National Children Labor Board.