The healthcare industry is dynamic as is evident by the composition of professionals working in the sector. The critical thing to note is that healthcare centers involve both treatment and care of patients. Treatment in this case involves the administration of medication and treatment procedures such as surgery or stitching of wounds. On the other hand, care is concerned with the immediate needs of the patients such as timely attendance, diet, a conducive environment, among others (Pirani, 2016). Debate always ensues concerning the most important aspect between the two. Although the argument cannot be solved conclusively, Florence Nightingale in her environmental theory argued that care or environment is crucial to the nursing profession. This essay illuminates on this theory and analyzes how it relates to the nursing profession.
To begin with the history of the theorist, Florence Nightingale is regarded as the founder of modern nursing. Nightingale first rose to prominence in 1854 when she served in an overseas hospital of the British Army during the Crimean War (Winkelstein, 2009). She led a team of 38 nurses to Turkey and upon reaching the hospital, she found that the facility was in deplorable condition. For instance, the wards were extensively overcrowded, the sick soldiers were covered with rags which were soiled with excrement and dried blood, the food was inedible and the supply of water was contaminated. Additionally, there was sewage discharge on the floor of the wards and animals were left to rot in the courtyard. Nightingale devised a plan to sanitize the wards as well as bathing and clothing the patients. She also addressed the most basic challenges such as ventilating the wards, provision of food and water and stopping the corruption that was hindering the supply and administration of medicine to the patients. According to Winkelstein (2009), before Nightingale was sent to the hospital, the hospital case fatality rate was above 32 percent but it dropped to 2 percent at the time of her departure. She left after 3 years and became a national hero. Her approach to wellbeing was emulated and would later inform the nursing profession.
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According to Nightingale’s nursing theory, illness is regarded as a restoring health process and the responsibility of the nurse is to balance the environment to save the life energy of the patient to recover from the illness. The priority here is to prioritize the provision of a stimulating environment to foster the wellbeing of the patient (Medeiros, Enders & Lira, 2015). The theory perceives a human being as a member of nature, whereby his or her natural defenses are stimulated by either a healthy or unhealthy surrounding. Nightingale’s composition of the environment includes healthy living and healing process such as: cleaning, ventilation, heat, lighting, noise, feeding and odors. Summarily, Nightingale argued that maintaining environmental hygiene is the basic step towards promoting wellness in healthcare facilities.
Nightingale’s theory seems to state aspects that are obvious but are often overlooked. Through this theory, one can realize how the nursing profession and the concept of treatment has evolved. Looking at the case of the British overseas hospital during the Crimean War, it is evident that treatment mainly involved physicians. Since these were soldiers, the physicians most likely conducted surgeries and stitched wounds but paid little attention to the environment. The assumption must have been that ‘treatment’ was the only thing that was needed for the soldiers to recover. Secondly, the assumption was that the environment played a very insignificant role in the recovery process of the patients. But it is evident that there were high death rates most probably caused by the deplorable conditions (Medeiros, Enders & Lira, 2015). Additionally, it is difficult for patients to get the appetite to eat or develop the motivation to recover quickly.
For registered nurses or anyone studying nursing, Nightingale’s theory resonates with the nursing profession. The recovery of patients does not incur by impulse. On the contrary, it is a process that takes time. However, the recovery process can take longer than it should if an unfavorable environment is provided. Even worse, an unconducive environment can make a patient’s recovery process agonizing (Pirani, 2016). When a patient seeks treatment in a hospital, he or she expects to get the best services to enhance their wellbeing. It is not prudent to cut or hinder the natural processes such as air supply or sunlight. The patients also need to eat to get the strength, which is crucial in the recovery process. And it is not just eating, but being provided with a diet that is appealing and stimulating. For instance, nurses can alter the meals of the patients such as providing meals designed for breakfast at lunchtime and vice versa. According to Nightingale’s nursing theory, there is also the need for nurses to be presentable when interacting with patients. All these aspects suggest that the process of recovery is also psychological. Patients have to interact with a conducive and enabling environment to gain the strength of recovering.
Conclusively, Nightingale’s nursing theory is important in the nursing profession. It is because nurses interact with patients constantly. While physicians are concerned more with treatment and treatment procedures, nurses should lean more on caring of the patients. Such care ought to involve the observation of seemingly simple tasks such as ventilation, cleanliness and a good diet. The process of care should ensure that patients have the strength and motivation to recover. If these aspects are observed, patients will take shorter times to recover and to some extent reduce unnecessary medical expenses both to the patients and the healthcare facilities.
References
Medeiros, A. B. D. A., Enders, B. C., & Lira, A. L. B. D. C. (2015). The Florence Nightingale’s environmental theory: A critical analysis. Escola Anna Nery , 19 (3), 518-524.
Pirani, S. A. (2016). Application of Nightingale’s theory in nursing practice. Annals of Nursing and Practice , 3 (1), 1040.
Winkelstein Jr, W. (2009). Florence Nightingale: founder of modern nursing and hospital epidemiology. Epidemiology , 20 (2), 311.
