Nursing: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
Line 6: Line 6:
[[Nurse]]s work in a large variety of [[List of nursing specialties|specialties]] where they work independently and as part of a team to assess, plan, implement and evaluate care.
[[Nurse]]s work in a large variety of [[List of nursing specialties|specialties]] where they work independently and as part of a team to assess, plan, implement and evaluate care.
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[Image: home page nurses.jpg|thumb|250px|]] -->
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[Image: home page nurses.jpg|thumb|250px|]] -->
I love to just sit around and nurse its bnches of funnnn
== History of nursing ==
{{Main|Timeline of nursing history}}
{{See also|Category:Nurses|Category:Nursing museums}}

[[Image:Florence Nightingale 1920 reproduction.jpg|200px|left|thumb|[[Florence Nightingale]], ''"Lady with the Lamp"'', pioneer of modern nursing]]
Nursing comes in various forms in every culture, although the definition of the term and the practice of nursing has being known as a [[wet nurse]] and the latter being known as a ''[[dry nurse]]''.<ref name="oxford">{{cite encyclopedia | title = Nurse | encyclopedia = The Oxford English Dictionary 2nd edition | volume = 10 | pages = p603–604 | publisher = Oxford University Press | year = 1989 | id = ISBN 0198611862}}</ref> In the 15th century, this developed into the idea of looking after or advising another, not necessarily meaning a woman looking after a child.<ref name="oxford"/> Nursing has continued to develop in this latter sense, although the idea of nourishing in the broadest sense refers in [[modern nursing]] to promoting [[quality of life]].

Nursing was viewed during the 17th century as a very low job in the social hierarchy. They had a reputation for being drunk and obnoxious, a view amplified by the doctors of the time to make themselves seem more important and able. It was not until Florence Nightingale, a well educated woman from a middle class family, became a nurse and improved it drastically that people began to accept nursing as a respectable profession. Other aspects also helped in the acceptance of nursing. In 1853 [[Theodore Fliedner]] set up a hospital where the nurses he employed had to be of good nature. Many people were impressed with this facility and because of it the British Institute of Nursing Sisters was set up.

Prior to the foundation of modern nursing, [[nun]]s and the [[military]] often provided nursing-like services.<ref>[http://www.victorianweb.org/history/crimea/florrie.html Florence Nightingale (1820 — 1910)<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> The religious and military roots of modern nursing remain in evidence today in many countries, for example in the [[United Kingdom]], senior female nurses are known as ‘‘sisters’’.
It was during time of war that a significant development in nursing history arose when [[English people|English]] nurse [[Florence Nightingale]], working to improve conditions of soldiers in the [[Crimean War]], laid the foundation stone of [[professional nursing]] with the principles summarised in the book ''[[Notes on Nursing]]''. Other important nurses in the development of the profession include: [[Mary Seacole]], who also worked as a nurse in the Crimea; [[Agnes Elizabeth Jones]] and [[Linda Richards]], who established quality [[nursing schools]] in the [[USA]] and [[Japan]], and [[Linda Richards]] who was officially America's first [[trained nurse]], graduating in [[1873]] from the ''[[New England Hospital for Women and Children]]'' in [[Boston]].

[[Image:Navy Nurse.jpg|thumb|250px|A [[U.S. Navy]] recruiting poster from World War II, showing a [[Naval nurse]] with a [[hospital ship]].]]
[[New Zealand]] was the first country to regulate nurses nationally, with adoption of the [[Nurses Registration Act]] on the 12th of September, 1901. [[Ellen Dougherty]] was the first [[registered nurse]]. [[North Carolina]] was the first state in the United States to pass a [[nursing licensure law]] in 1903.<ref>[http://www.unctv.org/ncnursing/thenandnow.html UNC-TV Nursing Then and Now] Retrieved July 2009</ref>

Nurses have experienced difficulty with the hierarchy in medicine that has resulted in an impression that nurses primary purpose is to follow the direction of medics.<ref>{{cite journal | last = Radcliffe | first = Mark | title = Doctors and nurses: new game, same result | journal = [[British Medical Journal]] | volume = 320 | issue = 1085 | year = 2000 | url = http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/320/7241/1085 | doi = 10.1136/bmj.320.7241.1085 | accessdate = 2007-08-14 | pages = 1085}}</ref> This tendency is certainly not observed in Nightingale's ''Notes on Nursing'', where the doctors are mentioned relatively infrequently and often in critical tones, particularly relating to [[bedside manner]].<ref>Nightingale, Florence (1860) [http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/nightingale/nursing/nursing.html#III Notes on Nursing] Full text online Accessed 14 August 2007</ref>

The modern era has seen the development of [[Bachelor of Science in Nursing|nursing degrees]] and nursing has numerous [[nursing journal|journals]] to broaden the knowledge base of the profession. Nurses are often in key management roles within health services and hold research posts at [[universities]].


==Nursing as a profession==
==Nursing as a profession==

Revision as of 18:18, 15 June 2010

For other uses, see Nursing (disambiguation).

Nursing is a healthcare profession focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life from birth to death.

Nurses work in a large variety of specialties where they work independently and as part of a team to assess, plan, implement and evaluate care. I love to just sit around and nurse its bnches of funnnn

Nursing as a profession

The authority for the practice of nursing is based upon a social contract that delineates professional rights and responsibilities as well as mechanisms for public accountability. In almost all countries, nursing practice is defined and governed by law, and entrance to the profession is regulated at national or state level.

The aim of the nursing community worldwide is for its professionals to ensure quality care for all, while maintaining their credentials, code of ethics, standards, and competencies, and continuing their education.[1] There are a number of educational paths to becoming a professional nurse, which vary greatly worldwide, but all involve extensive study of nursing theory and practice and training in clinical skills.

Nurses care for individuals who are healthy and ill, of all ages and cultural backgrounds, and who have physical, emotional, psychological, intellectual, social, and spiritual needs. The profession combines physical science, social science, nursing theory, and technology in caring for those individuals.

In order to work in the nursing profession, all nurses hold one or more credentials depending on their scope of practice and education. A Licensed practical nurse (LPN) (also referred to as a Licensed vocational nurse, Registered practical nurse, Enrolled nurse, and State enrolled nurse) works independently or with a Registered nurse. The most significant differentiation between an LPN and RN is found in the requirements for entry to practice, which determines entitlement for their scope of practice, for example in Canada an RN requires a bachelors degree and a LPN requires a 2 year diploma. A Registered nurse (RN) provides scientific, psychological, and technological knowledge in the care of patients and families in many health care settings. Registered nurses may also earn additional credentials or degrees enabling them to work under different titles (Nurse Practitioner, Clinical Nurse Specialist, Registered Nurse First Assistant[2], etc.).

Nurses may follow their personal and professional interests by working with any group of people, in any setting, at any time. Some nurses follow the traditional role of working in a hospital setting.

Nursing practice

Main article: Nursing practice

Nursing practice is primarily the caring relationship between the nurse and the person in their care. In providing nursing care, nurses are implementing the nursing care plan, which is based on a nursing assessment.

Definition

Although nursing practice varies both through its various specialities and countries, these nursing organizations offer the following definitions:

Nursing encompasses autonomous and collaborative care of individuals of all ages, families, groups and communities, sick or well and in all settings. Nursing includes the promotion of health, prevention of illness, and the care of ill, disabled and dying people. Advocacy, promotion of a safe environment, research, participation in shaping health policy and in patient and health systems management, and education are also key nursing roles.

— x, x, International Council of Nurses [1]

The use of clinical judgement in the provision of care to enable people to improve, maintain, or recover health, to cope with health problems, and to achieve the best possible quality of life, whatever their disease or disability, until death."

— x, x, Royal College of Nursing UK [3]

Nursing is the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and abilities; prevention of illness and injury; alleviation of suffering through the diagnosis and treatment of human responses; and advocacy in health care for individuals, families, communities, and populations.

— x, x, American Nurses Association[4]

The unique function of the nurse is to assist the individual, sick or well, in the performance of those activities contributing to health or its recovery (or to peaceful death) that he would perform unaided if he had the necessary strength, will or knowledge.

— x, x, Virginia Avenel Henderson[5]

Nursing theory and process

Main articles: Nursing theory and Nursing process

In general terms, the nursing process is the method used to assess and diagnose needs, plan and implement interventions, and evaluate the outcomes of the care provided. Like other disciplines, the profession has developed different theories derived from sometimes diverse philosophical beliefs and paradigms or worldviews to help nurses direct their activities to accomplish specific goals. Currently, two paradigms exist in nursing, the totality paradigm and the simultaneity paradigm.

Practice settings

Nurses practice in a wide range of settings, from hospitals to visiting people in their homes and caring for them in schools to research in pharmaceutical companies. Nurses work in occupational health settings (also called industrial health settings), free-standing clinics and physician offices, nurse-run clinics, long-term care facilities and camps. They also work on cruise ships and in military service. Nurses act as advisers and consultants to the health care and insurance industries. Some are attorneys and others work with attorneys as legal nurse consultants, reviewing patient records to assure that adequate care was provided and testifying in court. Nurses can work on a temporary basis, which involves doing shifts without a contact in a variety of settings, sometimes known as per diem'' nursing, agency nursing / travel nursing. Nurses work as researchers in laboratories, universities and research institutions.

Work Environment

Internationally, there is a serious shortage of nurses.[6] One reason for this shortage is due to the work environment in which nurses practice. In a recent review of the empirical human factors and ergonomic literature specific to nursing performance, nurses were found to work in generally poor environmental conditions. DeLucia, Ott, & Palmieri (2009) concluded, "the profession of nursing as a whole is overloaded because there is a nursing shortage. Individual nurses are overloaded. They are overloaded by the number of patients they oversee. They are overloaded by the number of tasks they perform. They work under cognitive overload, engaging in multitasking and encountering frequent interruptions. They work under perceptual overload due to medical devices that do not meet perceptual requirements (Morrow et al., 2005), insufficient lighting, illegible handwriting, and poor labeling designs. They work under physical overload due to long work hours and patient handling demands which leads to a high incidence of MSDs. In short, the nursing work system often exceeds the limits and capabilities of human performance. HF/E research should be conducted to determine how these overloads can be reduced and how the limits and capabilities of performance can be accommodated. Ironically, the literature shows that there are studies to determine whether nurses can effectively perform tasks ordinarily performed by physicians. Results indicate that nurses can perform such tasks effectively. Nevertheless, already overloaded nurses should not be given more tasks to perform. When reducing the overload, it should be kept in mind that underloads also can be detrimental to performance (Mackworth, 1948). Both overloads and underloads are important to consider for improving performance." [7]

Regulation of practice

The practice of nursing is governed by laws that define a scope of practice, generally mandated by the legislature of the country or area within which the nurse practices. Nurses are held legally responsible and accountable for their practice. The standard of care is that of the "prudent nurse."

Nursing specialties

Main article: List of nursing specialties

Nursing is the most diverse of all healthcare professions. Nurses practice in a wide range of settings but generally nursing is divided depending on the needs of the person being nursed.

The major divisions are:-

There are also specialist areas such as cardiac nursing, orthopedic nursing, palliative care, perioperative nursing and oncology nursing, or the specialization to cancer.

See also

The Wikibook Careers has a page on the topic of: Nursing

References

  1. ^ a b International Council of Nurses Accessed August 2007
  2. ^ Registered Nurse First Assistant Accessed May 2010
  3. ^ RCN (2003) Defining nursing Retrieved April 2007
  4. ^ ANA Considering Nursing Retrieved July 2009
  5. ^ Contemporary Nurse Virginia Henderson Retrieved July 2009
  6. ^ BMJ (2002) Global Nursing Shortages Retrieved July 2009
  7. ^ DeLucia, P. R., Ott, T. E., & Palmieri, P. A. (in press). "Performance in nursing". Reviews in Human Factors and Ergonomics. 5. Human Factors and Ergonomics Society. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |year= (help); Unknown parameter |city= ignored (|location= suggested) (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

External links


Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nursing&oldid=368219164"