In recent decades, a renewed interest in nursing and its history has brought once again the various roles that women play in society. She is the mother, the wife, the sister, the daughter.She is also the care giver called upon by her family members or her neighbors. Care of the sick was generally related to physical maintenance and comfort. The traditional nursing role has always entailed humanistic caring, nurturing, comforting and supporting.She was also the care giver called upon during the earlier wars. She was then the 'nurse' because she was nursing the sick and the suffering.Those were the times when there were no formal nursing education, when nursing was rendered out as a service in return for freedom from imprisonment. For indeed it was documented that women criminals, thieves and women of low reputes were sent to serve at war zones in exchange for freedom.If the public perception and media portrayal of the 'nurse' negates the virtues and ideals of nursing, it is largely because of its earlier history. That was history but it has made a huge impact during the subsequent years. History was a beginning of what is Nursing today and it was a rich and distinguished history.
Nursing, the profession, has slowly evolved. From Florence Nightingale, known as the founder of modern nursing who integrated scientific principles into the arts of nursing during the Crimean War, trained the untrained 'nurses'with principles of hygienic care; established a nursing school; wrote articles and her famous "Notes on Nursing: What is is, What it is not"; sought public and government support to improve health and hospital conditions and other nursing leaders during her times and after, nursing began to have significant effects on people's lives. Nurses were looked upon as angels of mercy sent down to earth to care as much as heal .And yet, even this had not help improve their image . Society continues to look at nurses as mere 'doctor's handmaiden'. How so? This image evolved when women had yet to obtain the right to vote, when family structures were largely paternalistic and when the medical profession portrayed increasing use of scientific knowledge that at those times, was viewed as a a male domain.
Nurses were also portrayed as sex objects, surrogate mother or tyrannical mother . This negative image of the nurse continues till today. This , in part, has affected the subsequent generations of nurses , the public and other professionals working with nurses.
Nursing organizations throughout the world are consistently battling this image, to give the nurses the respect and gratitude due them by society and to allow them to afford a dignified living. Each professional nurse can recount her ordeals while undergoing the nursing training. It's tough to be a nurse. It's even tougher because you are bound by oath to care for anyone irrespective of their gender, religion, race,color, culture. etc. You are bound by oath to care and touch anyone, known or unknown to you, who comes under your care. This is what the nurses do. To the nurses, it is complete commitment to the care of those under their care that matters. This is nursing, the professio
What does society give them in return?
The nursing community is facing a huge shortfall. It has become a global concern that needs to be addressed by all governments, private as well as public concerns immediately so that nursing will continue to thrive in numbers and quality. It is unimaginable to think of a technologically-advanced world without a nurse. A world without a nurse is a curse to mankind.
The media and society has positive roles to play. They ought to stop portraying the nurses in bad light. They ought to encourage the young generation to opt for nursing as a career. They ought to be active participants in issues relating to nursing. They ought to support nurse's rights. The governments and respective employers need to look after their welfare.
Then there is no curse. There is only the nurse. To care .
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