Category: Florence Nightingale

Florence Nightingale was taking care of her loving sister, Parthenope, although formally called ‘Pops’. Parthenope had fallen ill, as Florence being the Nightingale nurse of the family, she did her best to make her older sister increase her health status. Florence was exceptional at taking care of all beings, living or not. Though, especially her close and loving family. Whether, being her mother Francis, or father William. In this case, Parthenope.

Parthenope was also named after their mother, as her first name being Francis, not Parthenope. Florence was seemingly born with the natural calling to be a nurse. Ever since she had the ability to walk and talk. Which isn’t very far from, May 12, 1820, Florence’s birthdate. Her father William was a bank owner, receiving many pieces of land. Francis was dedicated and in pursuit of active social lives. Parthenope was tutored by their father in languages, history, and math alongside Florence. Although, Florence was never much interested in it, but rather in knowledge of nursing.

Florence and Parthenope grew up in a higher class than most, as the cause and effect of their father’s profession. Florence grew up well known as well. She seemed to always be out of the house with her seemingly expanded inner circle. Either that or she was nursing or bonding with her family she adored.

Florence grew up in ‘Grand Duchy of Tuscany’, Italy. Also known as Tuscany, Italy or Florence, Italy. Florence was named after her birthplace and hometown. Though later in her life, she transferred to England.

Florence received classical education, including German, Italian, and French. Florence also attended King’s College London, and University of Cambridge. Florence was able to exceed in all her academic studies.

At a very young age, Florence began nursing and taking care of her family. As well as passing neighbors when they were sick or unwell. Not to mention her friends when she got the slightest opportunity, she jumped for it. Florence knew that nursing would be her true and biggest calling in life. Countless times did she end up having to take care of her family, as well as herself with medicine and care. Florence didn’t mind, and she was always going to many events and parties. Since she was well known she was always invited to the events and parties. They were some of the many reasons she was out of the house.

As Florence grew up, all she wanted to do, and all she mainly did, was nurse and help people. That did distance herself a little from other people, but people did still gravitate towards the rest of her personality. She got better and better at her dream. During the Crimean War, she and a team of thirty-eight nurses increased the unsanitary conditions at a British base hospital to a better rate. They managed to reduce the death rate by two-thirds.

Florence also kept a journal. She wrote about her staff, and the experiences with the many patients she and the other nurses had. They had to do many difficult procedures. With Florence’s writing, the future of health care brightened.

In 1860, Florence established and created St. Thomas’ Hospital and the Nightingales Training School for Nurses. Florence started to get appreciation as the founder of modern nursing. Since Florence was so dedicated to her nursing field that she chose to not get married not have any children. This demonstrates to us that hard work and determination can help pay off and achieve your dream.

The international committee of the Red Cross began the Florence Nightingale medal in 1912. It was awarded to nurses who had given exceptional care to all the sick and wounded in war or peace. This metal is still available to be awarded to this day. The declaration of the Royal Red Cross had been instituted by a Royal Warrant on April 23, 1883. Florence Nightingale’s attendance was requested at Windsor on July 5 to receive the award for her “Special exertion in providing for the nursing of the sick and wounded soldiers and sailors.”

Florence became well known for changing the lives of her countless patients. Florence Nightingale was a trailblazing figure in nursing who greatly affected 19th- and 20th—century policies around proper care. She was most known for her night rounds to aid the wounded, establishing her image as the ‘Lady with the Lamp.’

She fundamentally changed the role of nursing in hospitals and was a key figure in introducing new professional training standards. There is something called the Florence Nightingale effect when a caregiver falls in love for their patient. Whether there is much contact or not. Feelings may fade when the patient is released and no longer in need of their care.

Florence’s Environmental Theory is that she is considered as the first nursing theorist. She believed the environment had a strong influence on patient outcomes. Many elements of her Environment Theory are still practiced and applied today.

In later life, Florence suffered from poor health and in 1895 went blind as her vision got worse and worse by every passing day. Florence nightingale was a very important person, even after her death in August 13, 1910, in Mayfair, London, United Kingdom. Being only 90 years of age, she passed peacefully in her sleep. Just as she deserved.

In everyone’s life, there is always someone who seems to ignore everything we do good and doesn’t give us the recognition we deserve. Florence Nightingale got all the appreciation she deserved, she was an amazing woman with an amazing gift. She took advantage of hers and used it to the best of her ability. She was the women everyone wants to be and more, therefore she was a woman with many gifts and a pure heart of gold.

“If a patient is cold, if a patient is feverish, if a patient is faint, if he is sick after taking food, if he is sick after taking food, if he has a bed-sore, it is generally the fault not of the disease,

Elevated levels of noise might be enjoyable at a sports event or a rock concert, but not in a hospital for patients who are healing and recovering from illnesses or surgeries. The constant beeping and humming of the machines, the chatter by the medical professionals, visitors coming and going in the halls, bright lights, ringing phones, overhead paging, and televisions can impact a patient’s recovery. Many hospitals are implementing noise-reduction initiatives in the form of “quiet time” to aid patients in escaping this constant clamor which can lead to negative outcomes. Evidence based practice has shown that the reduction of audio and visual stimuli increases sleep and recovery time, creating a more pleasant hospital environment and promote healing.

Evidence-based nursing is a method delivering nursing care and making quality decisions based upon a combination of clinical knowledge and the most recent pertinent research available on the topic. Replacing traditional policies and procedures with consideration of patient preferences and an individual’s needs can help to provide high quality care, improve overall patient satisfaction, and increase patient outcomes. Nurses make a commitment to life-long learning and providing patient-centered care, which is the basis of this type of nursing care.

With the demand for healthcare being 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, hospitals are a very busy place with constant activity. As a result of evidence-based nursing, a lot of hospitals are enforcing the two-hour time blocks as a way to escape this chaos by dimming the lights, discouraging staff from conducting loud and bothersome activities such as taking vitals, and encouraging a timeout from visitors interactions. During quiet time, all departments are asked to refrain from testing and consultations which can increase the decibel level of noise on the floor.

Quiet time was implemented to be utilized in the critical care environment. The purpose of the critical care unit is to provide life-sustaining care with the most advanced technology. Along with this type of care comes a lot of unpleasant stimuli in the form of machines with bright lights and obnoxious sounds. While the technology and constant bedside monitoring by healthcare professionals is necessary, there remains significant gaps that can affect the quality of the healthcare provided and patient satisfaction.

The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has suggested that hospital sound levels should not exceed 35 to 45 dB during the day and 30 to 35 dB at night. Since 1960, the mean noise level in hospitals has increased by 26% during the day (from 57 to 72 dB) and 43% at night (from 42 to 60 dB) (Halm, M., 2016). These average noise levels far exceeded the levels recommended by these agencies. It is recognized that the quality of care can be compromised by these high decibel levels and loud acoustic conditions, leading to unwanted mental and physical effects.

Unlike many other complications that arise with patients in the hospital such as catheter infections or falls, noise can potentially expose the patients to undiagnosed stressors such as sleep deprivation. Several studies have concluded that loud noises and external stimuli can cause short term impact such as difficulty concentrating, drowsiness, decreased reaction time, memory problems, anxiety, depression and mood swings. In the presence of healing, these symptoms can worsen and lead to additional physiological effects such as decreased immune function, reduced pain threshold, impaired wound healing, and increased susceptibility of infection. As an individual sleeps, there are decreases in muscle tension, blood pressure, body temperature, blood flow and heart rate, and the respiratory rate. Additionally, metabolism and stress hormones levels decline, and the immune system is activated (Salzmann, 2016). By enabling the human body to recover through the natural state of sleep, healing capability is enhanced.

From the patient’s perspective, these unwanted consequences can be a truly unpleasant experience that impairs their ability to rest comfortably and recover from their surgery or illness. From a hospital perspective, this decreases patient satisfaction score and opens the door to poor patient outcomes and increased complications. Research has shown that “noise levels exceeding 40 dBA may affect perception and judgment and interrupt complex intellectual functions that require concentration, such as problem solving” (Salzmann, 2016). This research further reported a reduction in noise levels ranged from 2 to 20 dB and sleep improved more than seventy percent (70%) after day-shift quiet times were initiated, leading to improved patient satisfaction.

The implementation of quiet time in hospitals nationwide is comprised of many elements intended to make the inpatient hospital stay more pleasant for a patient. In addition to the elimination of unnecessary noise, another element to the quiet time protocol is dimming the overhead corridor lights and turning off lights in patient’s rooms. External outdoor lighting through the windows are the only source of lighting during this time. This reduction is an in effort to reduce this visual form of noxious stimuli.

The human body is naturally equipped a circadian rhythm driven by the circadian pacemaker in the anterior hypothalamus of the brain. This rhythm functions as an individual’s inner clock and is a rhythmic cycle of one’s behavioral, physical, and mental cycles that responds primarily to light and darkness in the environment. Circadian rhythms, light, and sleep are interconnected codependent. Light stimulates the immune system by regulating the pineal neuro hormone melatonin, initiates the absorption of vitamin D and has been reported to reduce the number of hospital days in patients suffering from bipolar disorder. (Engwall, et al., 2015) The health, wellbeing, and recovery of patients can be affected by the patient’s ability to get quality sleep and coinciding with the circadian rhythm. By darkening the unit, it serves as a strong visual cue to be quiet, creating a more relaxing atmosphere stimulating the natural hormones and vitamins in one’s body.

The importance of the relationship between rest and healing dates back over 150 years to nursing theorist Florence Nightingale. Florence Nightingale was the founder of the “Environmental Theory” which focused on the integration of body, mind and spirit in the effort for optimize healing, and believed that “the role of the nurse is to put the patient in the best possible condition for nature to act so healing can occur”. (Halm, 2016) The components of this theory addressed areas such as lighting, noise, air, ventilation, cleanliness, and variety. As stated by Nightingale, “Unnecessary noise is the most cruel absence of care which can be inflicted either on sick or well”. (Zborowsky, 2014) Nightingale challenged nurses to create environments where optimal health could be achieved.

In the mid 1900’s, another prominent nursing theorist, Virginia Henderson, embraced the concept that the fundamental and biophysical components of basic human needs were sleep and rest. This was later referred to as the Need Theory. She believed that one’s environment can affect a person’s physical and mental wellbeing and the importance of the promotion of rest to recover. Well known past century theorists such as Florence Nightingale and Virginia Henderson have shaped the path for nurses to assist their patients in the road to recovery by applying best practice methods that include advanced application of theory and evidence based research as the foundation of their nursing process.

Many hospitals have put the theories evolved from Nightingale and Henderson to the test with the implementation of the quiet time initiative. An article posted by the Journal of Nursing Care Quality featured the “Quiet Time Bundle,” citing that introducing these types of interventions into the hospital setting has improved patient satisfaction and increased the quality of sleep by (10%) percent post implementation. Twenty-seven percent (27%) of the patients in the study stated that they were still awakened during quiet time hours by noises in the halls of external from their rooms, such as carts, slamming doors, and loud conversations. (McGough et al., 2018) While this is still a significant number of concerns, the trend is heading downward and showing promise to the initiative.

In 2005, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) has linked patient satisfaction scores to Medicare reimbursement. The Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey is driven by three main goals: 1) to motivate hospitals to improve their quality of care with regard to patient satisfaction, 2) to provide transparent public reporting of survey results, and 3) to allow consumers to objectively compare hospitals. (‘Is there a Relationship between Patient Satisfaction and Favorable Surgical Outcomes?,’ n.d.) Mandatory public reporting of these scores by hospitals, which includes questions regarding the rating the overall quietness of the facility, allowed for full reimbursement for these services.

Evidence based practice will continue to shape the way that nursing care is performed and received. Florence Nightingale’s Environmental Theory, coupled with Henderson’s Need Theory have helped shape and create the Quiet Time model as it is today. With the ever-changing technology in the modern day, there are more equipment, lights and sounds to add into the hospital mix, which may positively and negatively affect their ultimate care and recovery. Focusing on these unwanted complications, greater patient outcomes can be achieved.

References:

1. Engwall, M., Fridh, I., Johansson, L., Bergbom, I., & Lindahl, B. (2015). Lighting, sleep and circadian rhythm: An intervention study in the intensive care unit. Intensive & Critical Care Nursing, 31(6), 325–335. https://doi-org.casper.idm.oclc.org/10.1016/j.iccn.2015.07.001
2. Halm, M. (2016). Making Time for Quiet. American Journal of Critical Care, 25(6), 552–555.
3. Is there a relationship between patient satisfaction and favorable surgical outcomes? (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4548286/
4. McGough, N. N. H., Keane, T., Uppal, A., Dumlao, M., Rutherford, W., Kellogg, K., Fields, W. (2018). Noise reduction in progressive care units. Journal of Nursing Care Quality, 33(2), 166–172. https://doi-org.casper.idm.oclc.org/10.1097/NCQ.0000000000000275
5. Salzmann, E. M., Lagerqvist, L., & Pousette, S. (2016). Keep calm and have a good night: nurses’ strategies to promote inpatients’ sleep in the hospital environment. Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences, 30(2), 356–364.
6. Ward-Smith, P. (2015). Quiet at Night: Implementing a Nightingale principle. Urologic Nursing, 35(1), 45.
7. Zborowsky, T. (2014). The legacy of Florence Nightingale’s Environmental Theory: Nursing research focusing on the impact of healthcare environments. Health Environments Research & Design Journal (HERD) (Vendome Group LLC), 7(4), 19–34.

The film about Florence Nightingale ‘The Lady with a Lamp’ is excellent, with a gripping tale and expert technicalities that captivated the audience’s minds and hearts. It did a great job of highlighting Nightingale’s legacy, concentrating on the theory of the environment. It simplified Florence’s life narrative and her essential contributions that laid the road for the nursing profession’s progress. As an aspiring nurse. After watching the movie about Florence Nightingale, I have a better understanding of the history of nursing and what it means to devote one’s life to improve health care. I appreciate her for her significant efforts, particularly in improving the nursing status. Florence Nightingale’s contributions to nursing are being employed today. Nightingale’s journey to develop health standards was not easy. I was inspired of how she was dedicated not only to the practice but also to the people and especially in improving the quality of their health.

Florence Nightingale took nursing as a calling. She felt that becoming a nurse would allow her to aid the sick and poor. Nightingale was born into a privileged family and had no obligation to work. Nursing was not a prestigious profession at the time; therefore, it was very unacceptable for her to work as a nurse. Nightingale studied nursing at the Institute of Deaconesses in Kaiserswerth, Germany. Nurses at the time learned through experience rather than training. She aided during operations, treated sick individuals, and dispensed medicine. Despite her family’s opposition to her duties as a nurse, she continued to provide health care services to European hospitals. She devoted her life to nursing and even passed up the opportunity to marry in order to focus on the advancement of her profession.

England joined the Crimean War in 1854. Nightingale led a group of 38 volunteer nurses to barracks to take care the British injured soldiers. Florence gained a reputation for being dedicated to the care of wounded troops and for pioneering greater standards for sanitary hospital settings when traveling to Turkey during the Crimean War. Military hospitals were filthy and dilapidated. Nightingale improved hygienic conditions, which helped to reduce the death rate, and she was kind and sympathetic with the soldiers. As she made her rounds, she would converse with them and console them. Nightingale was known as ‘The Lady with the Lamp’ because she made her rounds at night with a lamp to light her way. Florence Nightingale is a caring person, she cleaned the rooms, set up a hospital kitchen, and offered great care to the wounded soldiers, bathing them, healing their wounds, and feeding them. Even though she was frequently sick, Nightingale devoted the most of her life to preventing disease and providing compassionate treatment to patients of all backgrounds. Nightingale spent a year and a half at Scutari. She returned to her childhood home at Lea Hurst in the summer of 1856, after the Crimean crisis was finished. She was greeted with a hero’s welcome, which the humble nurse did everything she could to avoid. The Queen honored Nightingale’s efforts by bestowing an engraved brooch known as the ‘Nightingale Jewel’ on her and awarding her a $250,000 prize from the British government.

Florence Nightingale didn’t have a job; she had a mission. Before taking her team of young nurses to the Crimea, she did not inquire about pay and benefits, and she suffered working conditions that would be deemed unacceptable in today’s society and her dedication to her job profoundly impacted the world of healthcare.

She was idolized by young women who wished to be like her. Even wealthy upper-class ladies began enrolling at the training school, eager to follow in her footsteps. Nursing was no longer frowned upon by the upper classes thanks to Nightingale; in fact, it had grown to be seen as a respectable profession. I learned from Florence Nightingale that when it comes in chasing your dreams, you should be fully devoted and conceive of your dream as a mission to complete. When it comes to pursuing your aspirations, there should be no hesitation. While pursuing your dreams, you will frequently encounter situations in which you must persuade not only others but also yourself. Before pursuing your goal, you should examine your strengths and weaknesses. So that you can reach your goal, try to correct your deficiencies wherever they are and focus on your strengths. Her life tells us that to reach this point, you must not only be enthusiastic about your aim, but also that if you never miss an opportunity, you will never miss your goal.

I agree with this statement due to Nightingale setting up the Nightingale School for Nurses at St. Thomas’ Hospital in London. Nurses were trained mainly in sanitary matters (cleaning a wound). This meant that nurses throughout the United Kingdom could come to the Hospital and learn proper sanitary care, therefore resulting in better treatment in hospitals. Due to this training nursing became a recognized profession not just an unqualified job, this caused more women to sign up to be a nurse. Nightingale also promoted a pavilion style of hospital this meant patients were separate from other patients which would lower the infection rate. Nightingale also believed that dirt led to infections and disease so by focusing on this cleanliness in hospitals were improved and were kept a lot cleaner. This was a main reason for the development in the care and treatment provided in hospitals in the years 1700-1900.

On the other hand, the vaccination was also a key role in the development in the care and treatment provided in hospitals in the years 1700-1900. This is because the vaccination reduced the spread of disease this allowed hospitals to be able to treat for the patients faster and more reliably. The first vaccination was created by a man called Joseph Lister which help prevent catching smallpox. This reduced the infection rate which allowed hospitals to spend more time on other patients which improved how patients were treated and cared for. Before Lister introduced a vaccination a method called inoculation was used. However, the government recognized that the vaccination was a cheaper more reliable way to stop the spread of diseases, so they funded research for more vaccinations. This allowed hospitals to provide a safe way to treat their patients from diseases, this encouraged more people to get the vaccination as they felt well cared for.

In addition, anesthetics were a key role in the development in the care and treatment provided in hospitals in the years 1700-1900. Doctors had been experimenting with anesthetics for many centuries, to keep patients still and quiet for long enough to perform operations. However, there was little doctors could do to sooth the pain for their patients. An early development was laughing gas which was very successful for small operations but had significant side effects: patients vomiting or coughing while being unconscious. James Simpson’s surgeon from Edinburg thought there had to be a better anesthetic than laughing gas to be discovered. Simpson and some of his friends decided to sniff various chemicals to see what they would do and after sniffing chloroform Simpson and his friends had passed out. This led to Simpson’s discovery that chloroform was a good anesthetic. Therefore, patients felt better cared for and felt the treatment was better than before

In conclusion, I do not agree that the work of Florence Nightingale was the most important development in the care and treatment provided in hospitals in the years 1700-1900. I believe that there were many factors that caused the important development in the care and treatment provided in hospitals between 1700-1900.

Introduction

In the 18th century, lots of things happened in the world of science. The influence of the church had decreased, and many people believed that God was not responsible for things that happened on the earth. It became fashionable to seek out answers to questions relating to disease and illness. Society was also changing cities began to grow making them become dirty and disease-ridden making the understanding to disease and illness even more important. Surgery was a dangerous and usually fatal business. There were three main problems, bleeding, pain, and infection. Which became the root of most new theories.

Robert Koch

What did Robert Koch do and what impact did it have on ideas of treatment, prevention or ideas about causes of disease?

Robert Koch successfully identified that different germs caused many common diseases, he proved Louis Pastures theory of microbes to be right. Koch discovered that bacteria caused tuberculous in 1882. Koch made it easier for future scientists to study bacteria by developing a new method of growing them. He also developed a method of staining them with an industrial die to make them easier to see. Koch’s theory that the identification of microbes caused particular disease was an enormous breakthrough before doctors had studied and treated symptoms and now the studied the disease itself. Progress was slow and it to a long time to convince people. Even the government rejected the theory at first. Despite all this the germ theory and the new study of bacteriology had an enormous impact on the understanding of what caused disease.

What factors played a role in the development of Robert Koch’s new ideas?

The improved science and better more powerful microscopes allowed him to make his discovery because he could look at microbes and see their different features clearly. Louis Pasteur early theory that microbes in rotting matter caused decay. This was the base line for Koch and his work basically proved and further developed this idea.

What opposition was there to Robert Koch’s new ideas?

The British government rejected his ideas of the germ theory and did not listen to him. One Munich chemist asked Koch for a sample of cholera microbes then he drank them amazingly enough he did not get cholera because his stomach acid killed of the microbes. This did not help people to believe his ideas. His ideas took a long time to be accepted by medical profession.

Change and continuity and the role of Robert Koch

Robert Koch play an important part in the development in the germ theory there were lots of people who discovered things, but Koch made the breakthrough and his work was very in depth. A long with Louis Pasteur he was one of the most important individuals that made this happen.

By 1900 the mystery of what caused disease had been resolved but still a lot of people did not believe it. Robert Koch did not only change the worlds knowledge of what caused disease, but he also made many developments which helped future scientist study microbes. He developed a dye to stain microbes with which made them easier to see under a microscope, he came up with a method of growing microbes make them easier to study, and he also inspired others to look for microbes and study them. All this was change but because the world did not accept his theory very quickly in the short term there was a lot of continuity.

Robert Koch- first to apply light microscopy to bacteriology. This source is useful but not much can be inferred from it without a caption. It is interesting that before Robert Koch microscopes were not used to study microbes and bacteria.

Florence Nightingale

What did Florence Nightingale do and what impact did it have on ideas of treatment, prevention or ideas about causes of disease?

On 4 November 1854 Florence Nightingale arrived in Turkey with 38 nurses from England, she went to an emergency hospital to help were the conditions were terrible, there was hundreds of soldiers were injured in the fighting. The hospital was very basic, and the soldiers were not given good food and medicine to help them get better. When Florence Nightingale got to the hospital, wounded men were sleeping in overcrowded, dirty rooms without any blankets. Wounded soldiers often arrived with diseases like typhus, cholera and dysentery. At first, the army doctors who worked there did not want the nurses helping and told here to go away however she would not give in. Soon after they arrived, however, there was a very large battle and the doctors realised they needed the nurses’ help. Florence Nightingale realised that if the doctors were going to allow her nurses to work then they had to do a very good job. Which she did at night she walked from bed to bed comforting the sick men, the called her an angle.

When Florence returned after the war to England, she was a national heroine. She had been shocked by the conditions in the hospital and began to campaign to improve the quality of nursing in military hospitals. She gathered a lot of information about food, death rates, and doctors’ training in these hospitals. In October 1856 she met with Queen Victoria and Prince Albert and in 1857 she gave evidence to a Sanitary Commission. This helped with the setting up of the Army Medical College in Chatham in 1859. In 1859, Florence published a book called ‘Notes on Nursing’ which is still in print today. She also founded the Nightingale School and Home for Nurses at St Thomas’ Hospital in London.

What factors played a role in the development of Florence Nightingales ideas?

The government played a key role because they gave her the money and funding, she needed to set up a nurse’s school and to make changes to hospitals. Her publicity and good reputation when she came back from Crimea helped her to be able to make changes to hospitals quickly and people accepted her work quickly because she was a hero.

What opposition was there to Florence Nightingales new ideas?

Florence Nightingale did not experience a lot of opposition because everyone could see how desperate the situation of hospitals was however, she did get some small opposition when she first arrived in Crimea from the army doctors. They did not want her to intervene and because she was a woman, they thought that they could possibly let her run the hospital.

Change and continuity and the role of Florence Nightingale

Florence Nightingale played an important role in thee improvement of hospitals however she would not of been able to carry out her ideas if the government had not given her the funds.

Her improvements and ideas were quickly accepted and how hospitals looked changed very quickly. Also her nursing school and the changes in the way nurses changed and what nurses actually did was very rapid progress. There was not a lot of continuity but however her ideas did come to a bit of a stand still when she got drastically ill. Nightingale Nurse in Military hospital. This picture shows the crowded conditions of military hospitals. It also shows how the nurses is comforting the patient. On the left-hand side, you can hands reaching out to her.

Edward Jenner

What did Edward Jenner do and what impact did it have on ideas of treatment, prevention or ideas about causes of disease?

Edward Jenner was an English doctor. When he was young small pox was a serious disease, as if you caught it then you would most probably die. As Jenner grew up doctors started to think that if you were given smallpox and survived then wouldn’t catch it again. So, Jenner ended up having smallpox given to him. They did it by grinding up smallpox scabs and blowing them up your nose. Jenner then had to stay in the stables where he had been given the smallpox until he got better. He said that a boy next to him died in the night as he caught it badly. Jenner slowly got better and was able to leave the stables. When he grew up, he decided that he was to find a cure for small pox.

One day a milk maid came to Jenner and told him that she had cowpox. She said that as she had cow pox, she couldn’t catch small pox. He then decided to try this theory out and he mainly used a local 8-year-old boy with his experiments (named James Phipps), and he cut a slit in his arm and put a cowpox scab in. a week later he did the same again but this time he inserted a smallpox scab. Jenner kept a close eye on the boy and looked for any signs of smallpox scabs. After about a month he knew this theory worked and had proven it. He then went on to invent the world’s first vaccine.

Although Jenner’s findings had the potential to help rid smallpox once and for all, there were several rejections to it. Many were shocked or suspicious of the idea that cowpox could cure a disease such as smallpox. But on the other hand, there were doctors who didn’t want to lose their income for giving vaccines. After a while vaccine were seen as dangerous, especially as doctors often used infected and non-sterile needles. After people started rejecting, Jenner published his findings on his own and wrote out his technique and tried to tell doctors to stop their methods and use his.

The British parliament was impressed with what Jenner had done and gave him £30,000 to use on a new vaccine clinic in London. In 1853 after smallpox had once again swept through many people. The government passed a law, the new law required everyone to have a vaccine against smallpox. It made vaccine not only compulsory but also free.

What factors played a role in the development of Edward Jenner’s new ideas and methods?

The British government played an important role in promoting the vaccine in which Jenner created. They provided funding and set up a society to promote vaccination. Later, they made it compulsory for everybody. Also, another key factor was Jenner’s observation and experimentation. Firstly, he observed the pattern of cowpox and smallpox in dairy maids. Secondly, he planned his experiment carefully and then repeated it several times so that he could be certain it had not been fluke.

Which factor was most influential in the development of vaccines?

Although certain groups of people were against vaccinations, there was another, very powerful group that were in favour of them. That group was the parliament. The British government favoured the new method of vaccination from the first half of the 19th century. In 1837-40 a smallpox epidemic broke out and 35,000 people died, in 1840 the government made inoculation a crime. Then later in the year 1840 the government agreed to provide children with vaccinations at the taxpayer’s expense. In 1852 the government made smallpox compulsory. In 1871 Public Vaccinators were appointed. Then lastly in 1872 the British government began to enforce the compulsory vaccination. The reason why the government favoured Jenner’s new ideas and methods was because it was safer and more reliable alternative to inoculation. It was also cheaper, because recipients of vaccines did not need to be put into quarantine, whereas those receiving the inoculation were in danger of spreading smallpox to other people.

What opposition was there to Edward Jenner’s new ideas and methods?

There were many opinions about vaccinations. The church said that using animal infection in human medical trials is against God’s will. The inoculators were not happy to see their businesses destroyed and that they will use their money and position in society to encourage the media to print negative things about vaccinations. The royal society refused to publish Jenner’s ideas because there was a lot to opposition to them in the scientific community. This picture shows joseph lister testing his discoveries on James Phipps The picture shows how Jenner injected the cowpox and smallpox into James Phipps. Also, it shows that the boy was fairly young too.

Joseph Lister

What did Edward Jenner do and what impact did it have on ideas of treatment, prevention or ideas about causes of disease?

Joseph lister was an English surgeon. he had noticed that wounds became infected and realised that the flesh was rotting. He then read about Pasteur’s work and he got the idea that germs may be the cause of infections, as if microbes in the air caused wine and vinegar to go bad, perhaps microbes caused flesh to rot. He then thought that sterilisation would save lives. So, he experimented with chemicals on the wards. Lister knew that carbolic acid was used in sewage treatments so he decided he would use carbolic acid to clean surgical tools. He also insisted that surgeons cleaned hands and bed clothes. One day a boy came into the theatre with a broken leg and lister decided not to cut off the leg as usual, but he decided he could prove what he believed. He did this by, instead of cutting the leg off he re set the bone and soak a bandage in carbolic acid and wrap it around the wound. This seemed to work because 6 weeks later the boy was able to walk again. This made people start to believe that what he had said was true. Also, they would no longer have to cut legs and arms and having a large risk of death, instead surgeons could repair it and wrap it in bandages that had been soaking in carbolic acid. After this experiment Lister then went on to make a carbolic spray machine which kept operating clean and sterilised. After this he detailed 11 different cases where carbolic acid had been used successfully in surgery. He published his discoveries and began persuading other surgeons to use the same methods, except some surgeons were not willing to use Listers methods and didn’t believe that the air was full of germs. Overall Listers works spread more quickly than the germ theory. Some surgeons took on Listers methods and people started to have operations in sterile environments.

What factors played a role in the development of Joseph Lister’s new ideas and methods?

Joseph lister compared his results to a recently published work of Pasteur, who identified germs as being responsible for decay. At this Lister thought that it could be the reason for flesh rotting so he then went on using the ideas of Pasteur to help him.

What opposition was there to Joseph Lister’s new ideas and methods?

Although developments in anaesthetics and antiseptics helped to improve the effectiveness and availability of surgery, not everybody welcomed the changes. Anaesthetics allowed for deeper surgeries to be attempted. Before the introduction of carbolic spray, infection and bleeding became even bigger problem. The death rate actually increased, which seemed to suggest that anaesthetics were bad. People did not trust the technique.

The Victorians thought that pain relief was interfering with God’s plan, particularly at child birth, which was meant to be painful. also, some doctors believed that patients were more likely to die if they were unconscious during the operation, rather than awake and screaming.

It took some time for doctors to accept that germs caused infection. Surgeons did not want to believe that they might have been responsible for the infections that killed their patients. Joseph lister supervises the use of the carbolic acid spray during one of his operations.

This picture shows the spray machine that Lister created and it in action. It also shows the cleanliness in the operation, e.g. clean sheets, clean hands, etc.

Conclusion

A lot of the individuals used new technology to help with their discoveries for example Robert Koch, and a few of them used earlier discoveries to build on. For some individuals the government was a big help for example Florence Nightingale, her ideas would not have come to anything without the government. Although other factors played a big part in the improvement of medicine, the individuals were most important because without them the discoveries would have never of happened. We think that The Big Question is correct as it asks, ‘Did individuals make the difference?’ We think this is true because all the individuals contributed in bringing the world into the future and making medicine better from then onward. Although there were a lot of opposition at the time of their discoveries, however in the long term their discoveries paid off and their discoveries is why medicine has come so far forward to today.

In this journal, I will be examining the similarities and differences between the code of conduct for nurses and Florence Nightingale’s pledge. The code of conduct outlines specific standards that nurses are expected to adopt in their practice today. Florence Nightingale’s pledge is what the early Australian nurses were expected to follow in the late 1800s/1900s and onwards. The code of conduct for nurses precisely states all requirements, behaviour and expectations for nurses in Australia.

The code of conduct for nurses is made up of seven principles. The principles are Legal compliance, person-centered practice, cultural practice and respectful relationships, professional behaviour, teaching supervising and assessing, research in health and health and wellbeing. Nurses must abide by the law, validate patient confidentiality and privacy, no discrimination against anyone regardless of their culture, race or beliefs, promote health and wellbeing, provide safe centered care, encourage open and honest relationships, promote shared decision making and care delivery and express integrity, respect, honesty, and compassion (Nursing and Midwifery Board Australia 2018,pp.5-15).

Nurses can regulate their behaviour by assessing their conduct against Professional practice guidelines, Code of Ethics, Code of Professional Conduct, Standards for practice, Professional boundaries and Decision-making framework. If a nurse has behaved in a way that that doesn’t comply with the standards and conduct, National Board may take action and this could result in a caution, having forced conditions on your registration or the matter could be referred to another organization (ANMEC n.d,pp.9-22).

The Florence Nightingale pledge is a statement of principles and standards for earlier Australian nurses to follow. Nurses swore to adhere to the code of ethics ordered by the nursing profession, to work collaboratively with all members of the nursing profession and to faithfully conduct any task they were allocated. The nurses pledged to never do anything evil- intentioned, partake in wrongdoing or break confidentiality. Under the pledge, nurses committed themselves to their occupation and to providing care to the best of their abilities. Over time nurses started adapting to the Nightingale principles. Nurses were trained in practical skills, which included the application of dressings, leeching and administering enemas.

Nurses were made aware of the equal importance of punctuality, diligence, compassion, cleanliness, sexual purity, and obedience. However some differences were, Nightingale pledged herself to God, Nightingale’s main idea was to help war victims and it was seen that only God could heal, that illness was some form of punishment for sins committed. Another difference was an immense amount of nursing work was housekeeping at this time, now nursing work is much broader than housekeeping. Earlier Australian Nurses didn’t have the appropriate sources to further their knowledge like nurses do now (Koutoukidis, Stainton & Hughson 2017, pp.6-7; Rapid Med Team 2018, paragraph 7; ANMEC n.d, pp. 4-6). In conclusion, it is clear the codes of conduct and the pledge have multiple similarities and some differences.

The codes of conduct and the pledge both share some of the same principles as stated above. There are also differences, such as Florence Nightingale pledges herself before God, not everyone has the same beliefs. Nightingale’s main idea was to help war victims, however, nurses must help all patients in need. It’s no longer seen that god could only heal, that illness is a punishment from sins committed in this day and age.

Medicine has come a long way from its origin in ancient times. As humanity and society has evolved, so has our knowledge in medicine and medical practices. Over the past few centuries, a tremendous amount of medical discoveries, vaccinations and cures, and medical breakthroughs have been accomplished. Discoveries throughout the ages have influenced and contributed to the improvement of today’s health care.

Nursing over the years has greatly evolved from caring for the sick in wars, to homes, churches, into hospitals with these changes women have been transformed from uneducated, underprivileged to being valued professions. Florence Nightingale changed nursing for good, it became a real profession with strict principles and standards.

The word nursing gets its significance from the Latin word ‘nutricius’ which means supporting. Along these lines, in the Old World, nursing was seen as a job of thinking about the family and not a calling. On the planet history of nursing, roots can be followed to religion, folklore, and Eastern and Western social orders. The old Egyptians used maybe the principal formal medical attendants, recruiting them to aid labor. It is from these beginnings that the present birthing specialists advanced. Among the Greeks and Romans, it was accepted that divine beings and goddesses impacted mending. There was a god for pretty much every human organic capacity. The ladies of the group of Asklepios were fanciful medical attendants. The world’s history of nursing records Hygeia similar to the goddess of wellbeing. In the Roman Empire, Roman aristocrats thought about the wiped out. In ancient civilizations, Egyptians were the first people to record health records and preserve dead bodies. Then the Chinese practiced curing the spirit and nourishing the body. After that the Greeks were the first to believe that illness is a disease of natural causes and they understand nutrition and cleanliness. Finally came to Romans whom established the first hospitals and built aqueducts and sewers to maintain health. During the Dark Ages which was in 400-800 A.D., Vesalius published his findings on the anatomy of a human, in ‘De Fabrica Corporis Humani’. Additionally, during the Renaissance Paracelsus was a Swiss alchemist and physician, who lived during the Renaissance. He used mineral and chemical remedies and even used mercury to treat syphilis. He wrote a book ‘Onte Miners’ Sickness and Other Diseases of Miners’ and Girolamo Fracastoro was an Italian physician, who created the name syphilis. He proposed that the disease was spread from person-to-person contact, by tiny ‘disease seeds’ or spores that could travel far. His theories had influence over society for centuries to come. Finally in the 16th century, French surgeon, Ambroise Paré translated Vesalius’ work to improve battlefield medicine. He sewed wounds rother and replaced boiling oil used to cauterize gunshot wounds with egg yolk or oil of rose. After this in the 17th century is when Nightingale changed the nursing world forever.

Florence Nightingale was born on the 12th day of May the year 1820 as a second child names after the city in Italy. Her parents, William and Frances songbird were wealthy and regarded residents of the England. William Nightingale had even challenged for a political situation sooner or later in his life however lost. Florence started indicating a great deal of enthusiasm for scholarly things from a prior age in her life. Florence started demonstrating an intrigue and enthusiasm for the poor and enduring regardless of living in a well-off family. Florence began showing an interest and passion for the needy and suffering despite living in a wealthy family. However, when she came of age, all her family wanted her to do was to find a respectable man to marry her, she knew that being a mother and wife would never be enough so she had an idea of doing something more than that. At that time nurses got no training at all, but she had other ideas. She would always read and stuck to her books refining her ideas to how she would help teach nurses how to help the sick. Finally, she was asked to train a team of nurses for work in the Crimea, where a war had struck.

There was a hospital there in the battlefield where injured soldiers would be brought in, but rarely getting better. She trained her nurses in fundamental principles of cleanliness and hygiene, neat and orderly. She then went to the journey. In the workspace soldiers lay on the floor in a pool of their blood, wounds not covered up with flies on them, sheets would crawl with lice and magots, it was like hell on Earth for her, however she tried to persuade the head doctor to let her help and get to work, but he resisted. Things got so bad that he was willing let her try. This was when it was her chance to prove her first principles of nursing, cleanliness and hygiene. Nurses cleaned every corner of place, believing that when injured came, they should expect good food, clean surface area and clean sheets and fresh air. The rest of the nurses and herself cleaned the whole place and started their work. She really took care of the injured soldiers in a humane way. As a human to another human, she would sit with them if they wanted, read to them or take their hand id they called out. Soldiers that would have died before were getting better, this was the greatest award for her. After the war ended, she stayed until every last soldier was well enough to leave, she showed compassion to the soldiers, empathy and true care.

The role of nursing was greatly influenced by the work of Florence Nightingale. Because of Nightingale’s examination the nursing calling has taken gigantic steps toward improving patient consideration, hence yielding most extreme recuperating ability and diminished death rates. At the time England as a country was able to regain some men from the war and regain its strength all thanks to the care of Nightingale and her efforts during this war.

The Crimean War was a military conflict fought from October 1853 to February 1856. In the end, the Russian Empire lost to an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, Britain, and Sardinia. By January 1856, “Russia lost 500,000 troops, mostly to disease, malnutrition, and exposure…” (History.com Editors). In 1855, there was a discovery found stating that poor sanitation levels led to an increase in mortality rates, as seen throughout the Crimean War (Slonczewski et al. 7).

Florence Nightingale, the Lady with the Lamp, was a social reformer who became the founder of modern nursing after many struggles. In 1854, under Sidney Herbert’s rule, Nightingale was allowed to lead thirty-eight other nurses of Crimea at the military hospital in Scutari. Once the nursing team arrived at the hospital, it appeared that soldiers were wounded and dying primarily due to unsatisfying sanitary conditions. A statistic states, “ten times more soldiers were dying of diseases such as typhus, typhoid, cholera, and dysentery than from battle wounds” (Fee and Garofalo). Hygiene was neglected; infections were prominent; there were no clean linens; clothing was covered with bugs, lice and fleas; rats were living under the beds; and much more unsanitary factors were present. The basic needs of survival were not provided for the soldiers (Fee and Garofalo). Changes needed to be made to lower mortality rates. While resolutions to the hygiene problems began, “the death toll at Nightingale’s hospital was higher than at any other hospital in the East…” (Bostridge). In response, the Palmerston’s government sent out a sanitary commission to improve ventilation and sewage flow. After struggling for some time, Nightingale came up with a solution and she pushed her ignorant mentality out of the way. In the end, she successfully reduced unnecessary deaths in the Army during peacetime. Once that concept was fulfilled, she turned her attention to the basic foundations of nursing and began incorporating sanitary concepts into hospitals.

Besides the chronological events in history leading to the discovery that poor sanitation leads to mortality, there is a biological answer. There are four kinds of microorganisms: bacteria, fungi, protozoa, and viruses. Poor hygiene or sanitation can provide these microorganisms a place to live and survive. In worse matters, this can allow them to communicate and duplicate if sanitation levels are not adequate. In the video, ‘Seeing the Invisible’, it states that bacteria can communicate using a molecular language. Also, it is said that bacteria were probably the first to ever communicate with one another (‘Animated Life: Seeing the Invisible’). This means that the spread of microbes is very high. Soldiers were dying rapidly because microorganisms were spreading and growing quickly and never fully dying out. In the hospitals, there was no form of sanitation until Nightingale was in charge.

To conclude, with little to no sanitation, microorganisms are freestanding in regards to where they travel, and how large and dangerous they may become. Through the terrors of the Crimean War, soldiers battled not only on the field, but when being cared for. Poor sanitation does lead to mortality.

Introduction

A Coat of Arms is a combination of various symbols that illustrate the values or qualities of a group, individual, or profession. This paper will highlight the qualities represented in my group’s Coat of Arms assignment. Three of these qualities will be discussed and analyzed in depth to explain their relevance to nursing.

Core Elements of Our Coat of Arms

The Coat of Arms developed by my group consists of five elements: Nightingale birds, a river, a dreamcatcher, evergreen trees, and a Dwennimmen. My contribution to the Coat of Arms was the Nightingale birds. All five aspects come together, in the shape of a puzzle, to represent social justice advocacy, knowledge, altruism, resilience, and cultural humility (See Template). The Nightingale birds symbolize social justice advocacy because, Florence Nightingale herself was a firm believer in challenging social inequalities (Potter, Perry, Stockert, & Hall, 2019). In addition, birds are known for their ways of communicating, which too is a critical aspect of social justice advocacy. A river symbolizes knowledge because the development of nursing knowledge is similar to the way a river will start as a stream and eventually venture out to become part of a lake or ocean. All nurses begin their careers as novices, but over time gain vast amounts of knowledge and experience, to finally become experts in their practice. In Native American culture, dreamcatchers are recognized as items that protect and provide, which is why we decided that it would be an appropriate symbol to embody altruism (Oberholtzer, 2012). The protective and caring qualities of a dreamcatcher correspond with the altruistic behavior of a nurse. We chose the evergreen trees to represent resilience because, unlike many trees that lose their leaves in the colder months, evergreens retain their pines all year long. Resilience can be translated to the nursing profession because, in the workplace, nurses experience many stressors that need to be managed. Cultural humility is represented by a Dwennimmen because according to the African culture, it symbolizes the humility that rams display (Labi, 2009). Nurses need to exhibit cultural humility by being respectful of the cultural values of a patient, even though their values may be incongruent with the patient.

In-Depth Analysis of Three Nursing Qualities

Social justice advocacy. Florence Nightingale’s legacy has become foundational for the nursing profession, especially in terms of social justice advocacy. Nightingale understood that the living circumstances of an individual can constrain their health (Hegge, 2011). Social justice issues must be addressed to eliminate any health disparities. Nurses should actively participate in social justice advocacy because they are the health care providers who work closest with the patient. If a nurse cannot advocate social justice for their client, they limit their ability to provide patients with the best care possible. Furthermore, throughout history, nurses have played a pivotal role in advocating for all members of the community by communicating. During the Crimean War, Nightingale insisted that the wounded soldiers be treated with dignity. As a result, she was able to nurse thousands of soldiers back to health (Potter et al., 2019). Due to the power imbalance present between the healthcare system and the patient, nurses are obligated to advocate for the patient, especially because they are vulnerable. When health reform is being debated, it is nurses who communicate on behalf of the patients who cannot speak for themselves.

Altruism. In nursing, the principle of altruism encompasses an unselfish concern and devotion to the welfare of others (Milton, 2012). This concern applies to clients, other nurses, and other healthcare providers. When nurses first encounter their patients, the patient is usually not in their optimal state of health. Biomedically, altruism is demonstrated when nurses offer specialized knowledge to contribute to the well-being of those who have a medical diagnosis (Milton, 2012). In practice, nurses are expected to provide care and protection for their patients without expecting any compensation or reward. Nurses will selflessly serve and offer their expertise solely for the benefit and well-being of others. Altruistic behavior can also be exhibited by nurses when they act as mentors. Nurses who mentor will guide and share their knowledge with others so that those individuals can be successful in their nursing careers.

Resilience. Resilience refers to the ability of an individual to cope successfully with adverse circumstances (Manomenidis, Panagopoulou, & Montgomery, 2019). Due to the number of difficult situations that can occur in the workplace, nurses are at risk of burnout, which can lead to the development of both psychological and physical problems. Effectively practicing resilience protects the nurse against nursing turnover. The ability to mitigate the negative impact of workplace stressors has also been linked to favorable patient outcomes (Manomenidis et al., 2019). For instance, if a patient is deteriorating quickly in front of a nurse, they can use their resilience to cope with the situation effectively and provide the care that the patient needs. A nurse who lacks resilience may not be able to think or act appropriately in the face of an emergency, which can, unfortunately, lead to unfavorable patient outcomes.

My Evolving Perspective of the Three Qualities

Social justice advocacy. Before researching social justice advocacy, I saw the concept as simply seeing injustice and addressing it. After further research, my understanding of how Florence Nightingale advocated for those who were seen as undeserving of her care, solidified to me the importance of social justice advocacy in nursing practice today. Since there are so many health disparities, a nurse must care for those who don’t have the privilege or accessibility to healthcare facilities. Throughout my nursing career I plan to actively participate in discussions concerning the healthcare system to better the health of the community.

Altruism. Before performing research on altruism, I thought of it as just another way to describe the quality of caring. As I continued to research I began to understand that altruism goes beyond caring. Altruism can provide a framework for the way nurses deliver care by being a motivational factor. In the clinical setting, nurses can choose to provide non-personalized care for their patients, which requires little effort, or they can take the time to get to know their patients and develop a personalized care plan. Nurses who choose to go beyond what is expected of them for the sake of the patient truly embody altruism, since this act ultimately does not result in any physical reward or compensation.

Resilience. Doing research has allowed me to develop my perspective of resilience as a nursing quality. Beforehand, I saw resilience only in the context of being beneficial to the patient. Although I understood that nursing burnout existed, I never made a connection between nursing burnout and resilience, and how resilience could protect against it. I now understand that if a nurse possesses resilience they will be more likely to cope with challenging situations effectively, therefore protecting themselves from becoming burnt out and allowing them to provide the proper care for their patients.

Conclusion

By combining nursing qualities in a Coat of Arms, my group and I were able to illustrate nursing within an art piece. Further discussion and analysis of specific qualities have allowed me to develop a deeper understanding and appreciation for nursing as a profession. 

Florence Nightingale is considered the founder of modern nursing. She was a nurse during the Crimean war who believed that the environment plays a role on the patient’s health (Alligood, 2018, p. 2). The purpose of this paper is to provide an in-depth analysis of Florence Nightingale’s environmental theory which provides the concepts, and basics of a healthy and clean environment.

Summary of Florence Nightingale’s Environmental Theory

Many people died during the Crimean war in part due to unsanitary conditions. Florence Nightingale’s environmental theory focuses on a clean environment for patients. The concepts within her theory are pure air, light, cleanliness, efficient drainage, and pure water (as cited in Alligood, 2018, p. 53).

Benefits of the Theory

An environment and its surroundings can affect a patient’s health. One benefit of this theory is that it is still used in practice today to provide the basics of a clean environment for patients. Today’s hospitals have efficient drainage by having toilets, and sewage lines to remove waste. They also have windows in patient rooms to provide light and ventilation, as well as air conditioning and heating. Nurses help to keep the patient clean by giving patients bed baths and changing their bedding when needed. Janitors clean the hospital by mopping floors and sanitizing patient rooms. Another benefit of this theory is that by providing the basics of a clean environment it helps to reduce the risk of diseases and infections in patients.

Limitations of the Theory

This theory has a few limitations. One limitation of this theory that can be noted is that having a clean environment still does not prevent patients from getting diseases, or infections. Another limitation of this theory is that it does not address how the environment can impact a patient’s health in patients of different acuity levels. The last limitation is that even though technology was non-existent at that time, the theory does not address how technology can impact a patient’s health. Technology is a part of the healthcare environment in today’s time. Technology has helped improve healthcare.

Clinical Application of Nightingale’s Theory Article

Summary

This article is about a scenario at a hospital where the patient was not getting better due to unsanitary conditions on the patient’s unit. The patient was dirty, and the surgical unit that the patient was on was dirty and had a bad smell. The patient’s health was deteriorating. The nurse that wrote about this clinical scenario used Nightingale’s theory as the basis of how to improve the patient’s environment, so that the patient’s health would improve.

Critiquing the Application of the Theory in the Article

The theory was applied well in this article. In the article the authors talked about how the patient, and the patient’s bed was dirty (Sher & Akhtar, 2018, p. 2). Florence Nightingale talked about the need for rooms, bed, and bedding to be clean in her theory (as cited in Alligood, 2018, p. 53). The patient’s windows were open to allow the smell on the unit to dissipate. The theory would be the basis for how the patient should be clean, and how the environment should be kept.

Florence Nightingale’s Environmental Theory to Clinical Practice

Clinical Practice Issue

A clinical practice issue that is talked about a lot in both the work, and clinical education setting is hospital acquired infections. Patients are susceptible to hospital acquired infections in many ways. Some ways in which patients may obtain a hospital acquired infection are from ventilators, inadequate hygiene, and Foley catheters. Proper patient hygiene care, handwashing, and following hospital protocols are ways to prevent hospital acquired infections.

Theory Guides My Nursing Care

Florence Nightingale’s environmental theory can be used to guide my nursing decisions, and actions related to hospital acquired infections by advocating for cleanliness. Another way is by making sure to use proper hand hygiene, and sterile technique when needed. Some other ways that this theory guides my practice is by me making sure my patients are clean, have a clean bed and room, and making sure they have fresh food and water.

Theory to Personal Philosophy of Nursing

Part of my personal philosophy of nursing is making sure that a patient is clean and has a clean bed. These things are very important to my philosophy of nursing because for a patient to get healthier they need to have a sense of feeling clean. Advocating for a patient to have a clean environment would help reduce the chances of the patient getting an infection and becoming sicker.

Learning from Completing this Assignment

This assignment allowed me to go more in-depth and get a better understanding of Nightingale’s theory. By completing this assignment, it allowed me to assess a clinical scenario, and critique how well the theory was applied to the article. By doing this it gives me a better understanding of ways to connect Nightingale’s theory to my practice as a nurse, which would help improve a patient’s health.

Conclusion

The paper assessed Florence Nightingale’s environmental theory, and how it can be applied to everyday nursing. It also allowed me to explain how the theory applies to my personal philosophy of nursing. This paper also includes a critique of an article that applies the theory to a clinical scenario.

“I pledge to support the Honor System of Old Dominion University. I will refrain from any form of academic dishonesty or deception, such as cheating or plagiarism. I am aware that as a member of the academic community it is responsibility to turn in all suspected violators of the Honor Code. I will report to a hearing if summoned.” Kenneth Combs, Jr.

References

1. Alligood, M. R. (2018). Nursing theorists and their work (9 ed.). St. Louis, Missouri: Elsevier.
2. Sher, A. N., & Akhtar, A. (2018). Clinical application of Nightingale’s theory. Journal of Clinical Research & Bioethics, 9(4), 1-3. doi:10.4172/2155-9627.1000329