Florence Nightingale Florence Nightingale (; 12 May 1820 – 13 August 1910) was an English Reform movement, social reformer, statistician and the founder of modern nursing. Nightingale came to prominence while serving as a manager and trainer of nurses during t ...

(1820–1910), considered the founder of educated and scientific

nursing Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health ...

and widely known as ''"The Lady with the Lamp"'', wrote the first nursing notes that became the basis of nursing practice and research. The notes, entitled ''Notes on Nursing: What it is, and What it is Not'' (1860), listed some of her theories that have served as foundations of nursing practice in various settings, including the succeeding

conceptual framework A conceptual framework is an analytical tool with several variations and contexts. It can be applied in different categories of work where an overall picture is needed. It is used to make conceptual distinctions and organize ideas. Strong conceptu ...

s and

theories A theory is a rational type of abstract thinking about a phenomenon, or the results of such thinking. The process of contemplative and rational thinking is often associated with such processes as observational study or research. Theories may be s ...

in the field of

. Nightingale is considered the first nursing theorist. One of her theories was the Environmental Theory, which incorporated the restoration of the usual health status of the nurse's clients into the delivery of

health care Health care or healthcare is the improvement of health via the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in people. Health care is delivered by health profe ...

—it is still practiced today.

Environmental effects

She stated in her nursing notes that nursing "is an act of utilizing the environment of the patient to assist him in his recovery" (Nightingale 1860/1969), that it involves the nurse's initiative to configure environmental settings appropriate for the gradual restoration of the patient's health, and that external factors associated with the patient's surroundings affect life or biologic and physiologic processes, and his development.

Environmental factors affecting health

*Pure fresh air- "to keep the air he breathes as pure as the external air without chilling him/her." *Pure water- "well water of a very impure kind is used for domestic purposes. And when epidemic disease shows itself, persons using such water are almost sure to suffer." *Effective drainage- "all the while the sewer maybe nothing but a laboratory from which epidemic disease and ill health is being installed into the house." *Cleanliness- "the greater part of nursing consists in preserving cleanliness." *Light (especially direct sunlight)- "the usefulness of light in treating disease is very important." Any deficiency in one or more of these factors could lead to impaired functioning of life processes or diminished health status.

Provision of care by environment

The factors posed great significance during Nightingale's time, when health institutions had poor sanitation, and health workers had little education and training and were frequently incompetent and unreliable in attending to the needs of the patients. Also emphasized in her environmental theory is the provision of a quiet or noise-free and warm environment, attending to patient's dietary needs by assessment, documentation of time of food intake, and evaluating its effects on the patient.The Nature of Nursing, Fundamentals of Nursing: Concepts, Process and Practice, Second Edition, Barbara Kozier, Glenora Erb, Audrey Berman, Shirlee Snyder, 2004, p.38 Nightingale's theory was shown to be applicable during the

Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the de ...

when she, along with other nurses she had trained, took care of injured soldiers by attending to their immediate needs, when

communicable diseases An infection is the invasion of tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmissible disease or communicable dise ...

and rapid spread of

infection An infection is the invasion of tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmissible disease or communicable dise ...

s were rampant in this early period in the development of disease-capable medicines. The practice of environment configuration according to patient's health or disease condition is still applied today, in such cases as patients infected with ''

Clostridium tetani ''Clostridium tetani'' is a common soil bacterium and the causative agent of tetanus. Vegetative cells of ''Clostridium tetani'' are usually rod-shaped and up to 2.5 μm long, but they become enlarged and tennis racket- or drumstick-shaped when ...

'' (suffering from

tetanus Tetanus, also known as lockjaw, is a bacterial infection caused by ''Clostridium tetani'', and is characterized by muscle spasms. In the most common type, the spasms begin in the jaw and then progress to the rest of the body. Each spasm usually ...

), who need minimal noise to calm them and a quiet environment to prevent seizure-causing stimulus.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nightingale's Environmental Theory Nursing theory Florence Nightingale

Environmental effects

Environmental factors affecting health

Provision of care by environment

See also

References