HISTORY OF

GERONTOLOGICAL
NURSING
HOW GERIATRIC NURSING STARTED
◦American Nursing Association (ANA)- formed a
specialized group for geriatric nurses in the 1960s
recognized it over the next three decades.

◦Programs were established to solidify the geriatric

nursing specialization and nurses were given
substantial educational opportunities through the
development of Geriatric Research Education
and Clinical Centers (GRECCs),
◦ Caring for the aged is not a new concept in nursing;
◦ Florence Nightingale pioneered this specialized field.
◦ She was renowned as the first geriatric nurse because of her
nurse superintendent position in an English institution, where
she cared for helpers and maids of wealthy women.
ATTITUDES TOWARDS AGING AND
OLDER ADULTS
◦Aging- normal process,
◦ -common
◦ -derogatory attitudes toward older
adults often exist because of negative past
experiences.
◦(Assignment- Research on the myths of
Aging)