The Field Of Nursing - 1505 Words

The field of nursing is growing and changing rapidly, but this isn’t the first time in history that nursing has undergone radical transformations. In ancient times, the sick was usually cared for in temples and houses of worship. In the early Christian era, nursing duties were undertaken by certain women in the church, their services being extended to patients in their homes. Florence Nightingale, the well-educated daughter of wealthy British parents, defied social conventions, and the wishes of her parents, and decided to become a nurse. During Britain’s Crimean War, Nightingale sought to improve the mortality rate for soldiers. Later, Clara Barton helped found the Red Cross and Agnes Jones helped establish nursing schools in the†¦show more content†¦In an effort to reduce disparities, the Patient Self-Determination Act (PSDA) was passed in 1990. â€Å"The PSDA is a safeguard for patients’ rights, giving patients the legal right to determine how vi gorously they wish to be treated in life-or–death situations, and calls for hospitals to abide by patients’ advance directives† (Black, 2014). Difficulties and confusion about do not resuscitate orders still exist, despite efforts to help patients, families, and surrogate decision-makers make informed choices (American Nurses Association, 2012). Where is the downfall? Is it that patients aren’t receiving adequate education regarding these orders? Is it that the world of healthcare is ever-changing and that patients expect that we can do more than we can to save their life? Describe the personal benefits identified from defining nursing and how this was related to professional socialization (When you learned about how to define nursing, what did you personally gain from this? And, how do you relate it to your experience so far as a nurse?) While in nursing school, I was just like my classmates, task oriented. It didn’t take me very long though to realize that I couldn’t be that way. Of course I still focus on the tasks at hand but I soon socialized into a nurse that