University of Phoenixes have been numerous events on the time line of historical research in nursing. The time line begins with Florence Nightingale and her contribution to nursing research and nursing research utilization. This paper will briefly discuss five historical contributions to nursing research that this writer feels have had the most influential contributions to nursing research, Florence Nightingale, the American Nurses Association, nursing research Journal publications, research funding developments as well as health promotion.
Florence Unconventionality’s the most significant key historical development In nursing research began with the work done by Florence Nightingale In 1850 at the beginning of the Crimean War. She was a pioneer In nursing research as she laid the groundwork for what nursing research has evolved Into today. Her publication In 1859, Notes on Nursing, described her main focus in environmental factors that promoted physical and emotional well-being of the patient (Polio & Beck, 2003). She researched the ill effects of poor hygiene and sanitation among the military in he war.
She began to collect statistical information and epidemiological data in order to change the methods in which care was the given to the military personnel. Improvements were made to the environments in which the soldiers were attended, which had a marked impact on decreasing the mortality from wounds they had received while in battle. Because of this work of Nightingale at the time, as stated in Burns and Grove (2007) “The military began to view the sick as having the right to adequate food, suitable quarters and appropriate medical treatment. These interventions drastically reduced mortality from 43% to 2% in the Crimean War”(Chap. , p. 9). Her ground work in research also demonstrates nursing research utilizations because she used her research knowledge to prompt changes in society by Improving sanitation, testing public water, preventing starvation and decreasing sickness and death (Burns & Grove, 2007). Her theories are perceived as the foundation of modern day nursing. American Nurses Cinematographers key contributor to nursing research and nursing research utilization over the years has been the American Nurses Association (ANA). In 1950 the ANA was Instrumental In conducting a study over a five year time span of nursing satellites and functions.
This was somewhat different from prior research as the nurses were studying themselves (Pools & Beck, 2003). They were looking at what nursing was, why Individuals chose nursing, how nursing was perceived, they also looked at the educational preparation of nurses. Later In 1959 the results of this study were used to define just what the professional nurse is. With ANA was also instrumental in promoting nursing research utilization by the sharing f research findings and their use in clinical practice when they sponsored the first of a series of research conferences in 1965.
Nursing Journal Publications nursing research grew from the asses and on through the asses, an avenue for communicating and sharing the research that was taking place was needed. The American Journal of Nursing was published in 1900. In the asses the Journal began publishing clinical case studies. A Journal specific to research, Nursing Research, was published in 1952. In 1978 Advances in Nursing Science, was published sharing nursing theorists’ work and related research.
A few other publications that have evolved specifically to communicate nursing research are Research in Nursing and Health, published in 1978 and Western Journal of Nursing Research, published in 1979. The list goes on of specific research Journals or organizational Journals that have been added since the asses to share research studies. Funding for Researched the asses the need for increased funding for nursing research was realized. A majority of the federal funds at the time were designated for medical research involving diagnosis and cures for diseases (Burns & Grove, 007).
According to Militias (2004), as explained in chapter 2 on agenda setting, in the early asses a report by the Institute of Medicine (MM) indicated a funding problem for nurse researches. It showed an inequity on health research money spent, five million dollars for nursing research as opposed to several billion for the National Institute for Health. To put this into perspective approximately two to three percent of federal funds were directed to nursing research as opposed to approximately 90% for medical research (Burns & Grove, 2005).
The ANA stepped up tit the creation of the National Center for Nursing Research (NCR) in 1985. The NCR Amendment (Militias, 2004) that was adopted has been instrumental in helping change and promote nursing research funding. Since this time other agencies have been established that promote nursing research with their mission statements and funding priorities. Health Promotion Researched recent years the focus of healthcare research and funding is expanding from the treatment of illness and moving toward health promotion and illness preventions.
Healthy People 2010, a publication by the Department of Health and Human Services, has increased the visibility of and identified priorities for health promotion research. Health Indicators have been created to help identify sentinel measures of public health, and to encourage wide participation in improving health in the next decade. These indicators were chosen based on their ability to motivate action, the availability of data to measure their progress, and their relevance as broad public health issues.
