C304 task 1

Ana Willis

C304 Task 1

When I think of nursing theory the first person that comes to mind is Florence Nightingale. She is well known for her environmental adaptation theory. In her theory she discusses ventilation and warming, noise, variety, diet, light, cleanliness, and chattering hopes and advices. I feel that her theory influences my values and goals. Her theory is also used every day in the hospital facility I work in (Cherry and Jacob, 2017).

Nightingales theory has influenced my nursing values by ensuring that I provide a safe environment for my patients. Patient rooms should be clean, well lit, and free of clutter to implement non-maleficence. Her theory has influenced my values such as altruism and dignity. I provide individualized care to my patients while respecting their morals. Every person is different and their care needs to be catered to their needs. As a nurse I am always concerned with the patient’s altruism. Safety is key and the driver in everything I do as a nurse. If safety is not up held then everything else fails.

Nurses apply Florence Nightingales theories in their practice to promote excellent nursing practices in many ways. There are restricted visitor’s hours to promote rest and reduce noise. Patients are put on specific diets depending on their health history to promote healing and further harm. For example, Nurses monitor the amount of fluids that patients take in that are admitted for Congestive Heart Failure to ensure they do not further complicate their disease process. In the morning nurses raise the blinds to let in the natural light so patients are aware that is a day time and time to be up and not sleeping. This helps to combat delirium in patients and helps them get the proper rest. Nurses also ensure the rooms are clean, linens are changed daily, patients are bathed daily and as needed, and housekeeping tends to the patient rooms every day. Not only does cleanliness apply to the patients but it also applies to the nurses. In current practice nurses must wash their hands with antimicrobial soap before entering and after leaving a room. To combat boredom of patients and have a variety of activities nurses can offer art therapy, music therapy, or pet therapy. There are many other things that nurses can do for patients in their nursing practice that are influenced by Florence Nightingales nursing theory.

Currently in my professional practice I also do many of the mentioned things above that align with Florence Nightingales nursing theory. When I bathe my patients I implement the use of CHG wipes that not only clean the patient but also provide cleanliness to help prevent infections. I also wash my hands prior to entering a room, assessing a patient, and upon exiting a room. While in a patient room I try to limit noise and distractions to help promote rest and healing. At the facility I work at we do not have strict visiting hours but we do have quiet time where we dim the lights and try to limit visitors to advocate rest. I am upfront with my patients about their care but at the same time am respectful of their feelings. I do not fill them with false hopes or tell them things that are untrue about their care or diagnosis. Everything that I do in my practice relates to Florence Nightingales nursing theory in some sort of way.

There were many influential nurses in the nineteenth and twentieth century. The two that I would like to discuss are Linda Richards and Lillian Wald. Linda Richards was born in 1841. Richards was America’s first trained nurse in 1900. She is known for creating the first system of keeping written medical records. Prior to her creating individualized written records nurses were expected to report important facts orally from memory. Richards contribution helped to change the process of giving report and keeping medical records. By keeping written records nurses are now able to keep an accurate history on the patient. When information is given by mouth facts can be misconstrued or completely left out. Richards contributions differ from Wald’s because Richards changed the process of nursing. Wald’s contribution recognized the need to expand nursing to a more in need population. Both women made drastic changes for the nursing community (Campbell, n.d.).

Lillian Wald was born in 1867. Wald is considered to be the founder of public health nursing. Wald recognized that poverties areas needed access to affordable healthcare. Patients were charged based on a fee sliding scale. She also started the first American public school of nursing in New York City and founded the Henry Street Settlement. The Henry Street Settlement was known for its large playground in the lower east side. The Settlement opened more branches in New York to provide services such as health care, community programs, and employment to everyone. She was recognized in the New York Times as “one of the 12 greatest living American women” and received the Lincoln Medallion for being an “Outstanding Citizen of New York” (Hansan, 2018)

The works of these two ladies influence my professional nursing practice in many ways. Richards introduction of charting patient information helps with effective communication skills. With the help of my charting I am able to effectively communicate the patients care to the oncoming nurse and members of the healthcare team accurate information. By charting the information items are not as easily missed and I am able to look back throughout my shift to ensure I didn’t miss anything. Charting is used in the court of law as proof to what did and did not happen. The rule of thumb in nursing is “if it wasn’t charted, it didn’t happen”. Having the ability to chart patient information also allows for implementation, interventions, and evaluations. I am able to see what the Doctors chart and view their orders which allows me to implement their plan of care and provide interventions that align with the plan of care. I am also able to evaluate things that have happened on different shifts like when wound care was last done and when it needs to be redone.

Wald’s recognition of the need for public health nursing and providing care to everyone in a community has changed nursing in a drastic way. By providing extended care to everyone in my practice I am able to provide nursing care to everyone in my community. Due to the diversity of my community I am able to care for people from all different walks of life and see a variety of different disease processes. I am also able to provide care to people who may not have received care before if it wasn’t for Wald. As a nurse I also volunteer in my community for a variety of things that offer public health nursing to members of my community. By doing this I am able to implement education to these individuals that they may not have ordinarily received (Hansan, 2018).

The State Board of Nursing and the American Nurses Association (ANA) differ in various ways. The State Board of Nursing is state specific. It is a regulatory body that sets the standards for safe nursing care, decides the scope of practice for nurses in its jurisdiction, and issues licenses to qualified candidates. The State Board of Nursing covers issues such as public health, safety and welfare, and help to develop nursing licensure exams (“What is a State Board of Nursing?”, 2018). While the ANA is a professional organization that represents the entire RN population. The ANA requires RN to pay a fee to become a member. The ANA helps to advance nursing and be the “voice” of its members. Once a member of the ANA you are given resources to further your career, access to journals, discounts on certification exams, discounts on personal benefits, ANA meetings and conferences, live webinars, and many other benefits. The ANA is a nationwide organization (“About ANA”, n.d.).