Sample Essay on Florence Nightingale – A Reformer
Florence Nightingale was a well-renowned reformer who pioneered and reformed modern-day nursing and became known as the “Founder of Modern Nursing.” Defying the notion that nursing is meant for people of low status, Nightingale pursued becoming a nurse despite belonging to a cultured British family. Instead of living a carefree life, as conventional English women would do, Nightingale started nursing in the early 1850s at Middlesex Hospital for governesses. Her performance there was highly appreciated. After the Crimean War broke out, Nightingale rose to Secretary of War Sidney Herbert’s call to provide nursing services for the injured soldiers. Nightingale especially worked and efficiently managed the hospital previously, which was in very ill sanitary conditions. Based on her observations in the Crimean War, she wrote her Notes on Matters Affecting the Health, Efficiency, and Hospital Administration of the British Army.
She also wrote notes on hospitals, discussing how to manage civilian hospitals. In recognition of her services to the nation, the Queen awarded her a brochure, later known as “Nightingale Broche,” and an award of $250,000, which she used for her cause. She also served as the Authority on healthcare reforms in Mayfair and the Authority on Public sanitation issues in India.
Florence Nightingale
The nursing theory proposed by Nightingale orbits around manipulating the environment for a patient’s cure and speeding up the healing process. She believed that nature itself has the power to cure, and the basic task of a nurse is to make the best possible natural conditions available to act upon the patient in favor of his health.
Environment, which itself can be altered by nursing practices, has a deep influence on a patient, either it can suppress the diseases or it may put a man on the deathbed. The health process can be accelerated by establishing the notion that the environment can be used to assist in curing the patient by vigilantly controlling and monitoring a few environmental aspects. Some of these elements include efficient ventilation of patient’s rooms to allow an adequate influx of fresh air.
Ensuring the provision of light, especially Sunlight, has a beneficial impact on health. Keeping a good level of cleanliness in the room is also very much essential. There must be a freshwater supply; the patient’s room must comply with sanitary standards. Avoiding noisy conversations near the patient.
The bed and bed sheet must be clean, and its height must be comfortable. Help the patient keep himself/herself clean and dry. Employing interpersonal skills to assist the patient also boosts the recovery process. The nursing theory, as put forward by Nightingale, is widely appreciated and largely practiced today.