History of Nursing Theory

History of Nursing Theory

• Florence Nightingale is credited with initiating the history of professional nursing, advocating for the education of women in nursing at a time when they had limited public service roles.
• Nightingale’s service at the Scutari hospital during the Crimean War led to her vision of nursing and the establishment of the first nursing school at St. Thomas’ Hospital in London.
• Her contributions to nursing education and practice laid the groundwork for the establishment of nursing schools and hospitals in the U.S. in the early 20th century.
• Nightingale distinguished nursing knowledge from medical knowledge, emphasizing that nursing care is based on an understanding of patients and their environments.
• A century after Nightingale’s initial vision, discussions about developing distinct nursing knowledge outside of medical practice started gaining traction among nursing leaders in the 1950s.
• The need for nursing knowledge as a science was recognized, transitioning from an apprenticeship model to a structured academic approach.
• The transition from vocation to profession in nursing is marked by the need for specialized knowledge to inform nursing practice.
• The "curriculum era" focused on identifying essential content for nursing education, resulting in the publication of a standardized nursing curriculum by the mid-1930s.
• This period saw the early concepts for moving nursing education from hospital-based diploma programs towards colleges and universities.
• Research began playing a significant role in developing nursing knowledge during the mid-20th century, fostering greater involvement from nursing leaders in academia and research.
• The 1970s evaluation of the journal Nursing Research highlighted deficiencies in conceptual frameworks within nursing studies, underscoring the need for specialized nursing knowledge.
• Key milestones in nursing theory evolution included the standardization of master's-level nursing education and discussions around doctoral education for nurses, signaling a significant shift towards academic recognition of nursing as a profession.