NRS 430 How has nursing practice evolved over time? Re: Topic 2 DQ 2

 

In comparing the first nurses and the 21st century nurses, one can see a lot of similarities. They both cared for the sick because they had a feeling that this is something they were meant to do (Whitney, 2018). Many see that nurses are seen and practice in multiple settings. Florence Nightingale, one of the people who spearheaded advancing the practice of nursing as a profession. She was well respected for transforming healthcare during the 19th century (Whitney, 2018). The nurse has multiple parts that they play, they are seen as strangers, teachers, counselors, resource, technical expert, and leader (Creasia & Friberg,2011). Like Florence Nightingale, nurses are well respected by the public. Though there are some who does not see us as vital part of their healing process, most people see nurses as their advocates. A factor that affect a person’s view of nursing is if they had a bad experience from even if it was just from one nurse. Another big factor in influencing how the public sees the nursing profession is Hollywood. It often shows nurses in situations that is far from what we do, some are shown as sex symbols and others are seen as drug addicts. There are those that show more realistic daily tasks in a normal shift but most show nurses as somewhat comedic and not at all a true portrayal of what we do (Dean, 2018). Personally, this nurse believes that the easiest way to educate general public on our role as a nurse is to start with our patients. If we show them what nurses do, we are educators, advocates, critical thinkers, communicators, and most importantly, we are the bridge between all the other healthcare providers. The patients will see, remember and share it to people they know and talk to. This nurse believes in providing the very best care to the patients and families a nurse takes care of and having an impact in their lives even if a nurse’s interaction is short. As nurses, one can start small and hopefully it will have a continuous ripple for everyone to see how much of ourselves a nurse give. Also, nurses need to continue to educate themselves, whether it is about new practices or even pushing to go beyond what nurses already know. Only when nurses educate themselves can they knw more and share it to their patients and their families.