Nursing Care Through History

In honor of National Nurses Week I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of the men and women who work tirelessly day in and day out trying to make a difference in someones life. From the Hospital to the Home Health Nurse and from the Flight Nurse to the Military Nurse. The job you do is appreciated even though you rarely hear a thank you. The management and ownership group of Our Urgent Care would like to express a great big THANK YOU! And a special THANK YOU to our staff nurses you do a great Job and we appreciate all of you.

I would like to pass along a short history of nurses and nursing care...

Nursing care goes as far back as human history. In the earliest of time women, because of their natural maternal instinct, nursed and cared for their family and extended family from the home. Nursing during this time period comprised mostly of hygiene and comfort for the infirmed.

As time marched on, the job of nursing the sick and injured fell upon the churches of the time. Sisters of local parishes would go to the homes of the sick and into the battle fields to care for the wounded. Think of this time as the 16^th and 17^th centuries. Around this time some of the first hospitals were established. The first North American hospital was established in 1645 in Montreal, Quebec.

The 18^th century brought us Florence Nightingale. Florence Nightingale began her training in 1850 in Egypt and completed her studies in Germany. After a year of training her mentors declared her a nurse and by 1853 she was appointed Superintendent of the English General Hospitals in Turkey. So why is Florence Nightingale so revered and thought of as a pioneer of Nursing?

In a nut shell, Florence Nightingale earned respect and admiration for her work caring for the injured during the Crimean War. She made rounds at night carrying a lamp and checking on her patients. To this day, some nursing schools have a lamp lighting ceremony for their graduating nurses. During the Crimean War death rates were very high not because of trauma but due to unsanitary conditions and disease. Nightingale did not recognize unsanitary conditions and disease were connected but neither did the doctors of that time. It wasn't until later, after the war, that Nightingale returned to England and did some research and found the connection. From that point on, she advocated for sanitary conditions in hospitals. Besides tending to the war wounded, she established the first secular training program for nurses in 1860, St. Thomas' Hospital in London, England.

Fast forward through the later half of the 19^th century and the 20^th century where numerous hospitals and training programs are established. The education of nurses become standardized and Universities developed curriculum based on research and education values. Nurses become increasingly educated and in 1965 the first Nurse Practitioner program is developed at the University of Colorado.

Nurses, today are found everywhere. You depend on the School Nurse to care for your child if they become sick at school. If you are severely injured and require a helicopter you will likely be cared for by a Nurse/Paramedic team. The home bound depend on the visiting nurse and the large corporation staff nurses to care for employees who become sick. And let's not forget the thousands of nurses at the urgent cares, hospitals, doctor's offices and nursing homes across the country. Today, the low death rate of soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan can be contributed to the superb nursing care in the U.S. Military.

This week celebrates the important contributions of Nurses. So if you know a nurse or bump into a nurse this week, extend a hand and thank them for everything they do.