MSN-FP6103 The History of Nursing Education

Paper Details

School: Capella University
Subject: Nursing
Topic: History of And Trends in Nursing Paper
Course: MSNFP6103
Referencing: APA
Pages: 2

The History of Nursing Education

The last two centuries experienced significant changes in the nursing career. The number of people in nursing schools today is testimony that the profession has advanced significantly. There are more educational options available for contemporary nurses, which reflects a great opportunity for working nurses. Various historical events have shaped nursing education to reflect the contemporary formal nurse academic setting.

Florence Nightingale is among the historical influences on nursing education. Florence Nightingale reformed the nursing program to become science-oriented and continued to improve the field following the graduation speech by Dr. Hooker. She reiterated the desire for reliable and proper nursing learning and established a nursing institute in London as the pioneer science-oriented nursing institution (Shetty, 2016). At the time, nursing curricula were confined to learning basic knowledge and deserted the incorporation of science. The medical demands of the Civil War in 1869 influenced the American Medical Association (AMA) to empower health facilities to implement nursing learning programs to supplement the nurses; population.

In 1921, the licensure applied in all states influenced the change in nursing education. The nursing profession started to gain power as a career. The health care demands of the people were altering and becoming complex forcing the nursing occupation to adjust. The situation made it clear that nurses needed the ability to offer care that met the set ideals (Carson-Newman, 2018). North Carolina was the first state to establish a nursing licensure exam that verified to be among the substantial nursing education changes. Patient care became complex in the later decades and influenced more knowledge in the medical and nursing fields.

In 1923, Yale Nursing School was launched as a sovereign entity in America and accommodated women into the program. The participation of women in the nursing profession was not common in colleges and universities at the time. Yale’s Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree was launched in 1925. Students needed to gain general college education in other institutions before enrolling at Yale.

In the 1950s, nursing was considered a key profession. The American Nurses Association (ANA) suggested that nursing agendas needed four years of education unless the learner needed the practical skills alone, which they can attain in the two-year course. Today, nurses have to begin from a diploma or a college nursing course to obtain a license. ANA recommends a bachelor’s degree for registered nurses, a symbol that the profession is set to advance further.

The first clinic initiative was established in 1974 in the U.S. The approach was meant to empower nursing education to incorporate in-home care for individuals with life-threatening illnesses. The program’s interest was influenced by Florence Wald, who featured terminally ill patients and their need for connecting with loved ones rather than undergoing treatment for incurable diseases (Buck 2011). Her movement influenced nursing education to start preparing nurses for home-based care for such patients.

The future of nursing profession entails advanced academic achievements. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) endorses that the population of nurses with bachelor’s qualification be elevated by 80%. The elevated education heights in the profession are linked with the low level of patient death. Higher education is considered a way to attract more career prospects as many institutes wish to hire nurses with bachelor’s qualification (Morin, 2014). Nurses and Nursing students appreciate that they are part of a long heritage to serve society’s needs. The profession’s future needs advanced academic skills and demonstrated devotion to increasing the information base and offering quality care.

Reference

Buck J. (2011). Policy and the Re-Formation of Hospice: Lessons from the Past for the Future of Palliative Care. Journal of hospice and palliative nursing : JHPN : the official journal of the Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association, 13(6), S35–S43. https://doi.org/10.1097/NJH.0b013e3182331160

Carson-Newman. (2018). Changes in Nursing Education Over Time. Carson-Newman A Christian University. Available at: https://onlinenursing.cn.edu/news/history-nursing-education

Morin, Karen. (2014). Nursing education: The past, present and future. Journal of Health Specialties. 2. 10.4103/1658-600X.142781.

Shetty, Asha. (2016). Florence Nightingale: The queen of nurses. Archives of Medicine and Health Sciences. 4. 144. 10.4103/2321-4848.183362.