HISTORICAL

EVOLUTION OF
NURSING
 1. Period of Intuitive Nursing/
Medieval Period.
HISTORICAL 2. Period of Apprentice Nursing/
EVOLUTION Middle Ages.
OF
NURSING 3. Period of Educated Nursing/
Nightingale Era 19th-20th century
4. Period of Contemporary
Nursing/20th Century
  Nursing was
 “Untaught” and instinctive.
1. Period of
Intuitive  It was performed of compassion
Nursing /
Medieval for others, out of the wish to
Period. help others.
 Function that belonged to
women. 
  Nursing was
1. Period of  Viewed as a natural nurturing
Intuitive
Nursing / job for women. 
Medieval  Expected to take good care of
Period.
the children, sick and the aged.
  No caregiving training. 

 Based on experience and

1. Period of
Intuitive observation.
Nursing /
Medieval  Primitive men believed that illness
Period.
was caused by the invasion of the
victim’s body of evil spirits.
  They believed that the medicine
man, Shaman or Witch doctor had
1. Period of the power to heal.
Intuitive
Nursing /  By using white magic, hypnosis,
Medieval
charms, dances, incantation,
Period.
purgatives, massage, fire, water
and herbs as a mean of driving
illness from the victim.
1. Period of  Trephining – Drilling a hole in the
Intuitive skull with a rock or stone without
Nursing /
Medieval anaesthesia was a last resort to
Period. drive evil spirits from the body of
the afflicted.
  Care was done by
2. Period of   Crusaders,
Apprentice 
Nursing /  Prisoners,
Middle  Religious orders
Ages
 Nursing care was performed
without any formal education.  
  By people who were directed

2. Period of  by more experienced nurses

Apprentice  (on the job training). 
Nursing /
Middle  This kind of nursing was
Ages
developed by religious orders
of the Christian Church.
  Nursing went down to the lowest
level
2. Period of 
 Wrath/anger of Protestantism
Apprentice 
Nursing / removed properties of
Middle
Ages hospitals and schools
connected with Roman
Catholicism.
  Nursing went down to the lowest
level
2. Period of   Nurses fled their lives; soon
Apprentice 
Nursing / there was shortage of people to
Middle care for the sick.
Ages
 Hundreds of Hospitals closed;
there was no provision for the
sick, no one to care for the sick.
  Nursing went down to the lowest
2. Period of  level
Apprentice 
Nursing /  Nursing became the work of
Middle the least desirable of women –
Ages
Prostitutes, Alcoholics,
Prisoners
  Pastor Theodore Fliedner and his
wife, Fredericka established the
2. Period of 
Apprentice  Kaiserswerth Institute for the
Nursing / training of Deaconesses (the
Middle
Ages 1st formal training school for
nurses) in Germany.
2. Period of 
Apprentice   This was where Florence
Nursing /
Middle Nightingale received her 3-month
Ages course of study in Nursing.
  The development of nursing
during this period was strongly
3. Period of influenced by:
Educated
Nursing / a. Trends resulting from wars –
Nightingale Crimean, Civil war
Era 19th-
20th century b. Arousal of social consciousness

c. Increased educational
opportunities offered to women.
3. Period of  Florence Nightingale was asked by
Educated Sir Sidney Herbert of the British
Nursing /
Nightingale War Department to recruit female
Era 19th- nurses to provide care for the sick
20th century
and injured in the Crimean War.
  In 1860, The Nightingale Training
School of Nurses opened at St.
Thomas Hospital in London.
3. Period of
Educated  The school served as a model for
Nursing /
Nightingale other training schools. 
Era 19th-
 Its graduates traveled to other
20  century
th

countries to manage hospitals

and institute nurse-training
programs.
  Nightingale focus vision of
nursing.

3. Period of  Her system was more on

Educated developing the profession within
Nursing /
Nightingale hospitals. 
Era 19th-
 Nurses should be taught in
20  century
th

hospitals associated with medical

schools and curriculum should
include both theory and practice.
  It was the 1st school of nursing that
provided both theory-based
3. Period of knowledge and clinical skill
Educated
Nursing / building.
Nightingale
 Nursing evolved as an art and
Era 19 -
th

20th century science

 Formal nursing education and

nursing service begun
  Mother of modern nursing.

 Lady with the Lamp because of her

FACTS ABOUT achievements in improving the
FLORENCE
standards for the care of war
NIGHTINGALE
casualties in the Crimean war.

 Born May 12, 1800 in Florence,

Italy.
  Raised in England in an
atmosphere of culture and
affluence.

 Not contended with the social

FACTS ABOUT
FLORENCE custom imposed upon her as a
NIGHTINGALE
Victorian Lady,

 She developed her self-appointed

goal: To change the profile of
Nursing.
  She compiled notes of her visits to
hospitals and her observations of
FACTS ABOUT the sanitary facilities, social
FLORENCE
NIGHTINGALE problems of the places she visited.
 Noted the need for preventive
medicine and good nursing.
 
FACTS ABOUT Advocated for care of those
FLORENCE afflicted with diseases caused by
NIGHTINGALE
lack of hygienic practices.
  At age 31, she entered the
Deaconesses School at

FACTS ABOUT Kaiserswerth inspite of her family’s

FLORENCE resistance to her ambitions. 
NIGHTINGALE
 She became a nurse over the
objections of society and her
family.
  Worked as a superintendent for
Gentlewomen Hospital, a charity
hospital for ill governesses.
FACTS ABOUT
FLORENCE  Disapproved the restrictions on
NIGHTINGALE
admission of patients and
considered this unchristian and
incompatible with health care.
  Upgraded the practice of nursing
and made nursing an honorable
FACTS ABOUT
FLORENCE profession for women.
NIGHTINGALE
 Led nurses that took care of the
wounded during the Crimean war.
  Put down her ideas in 2 published
books:
FACTS ABOUT
FLORENCE  Notes on Nursing, What It is
NIGHTINGALE
answer & What It Is Not and
 Notes on Hospitals.
  She revolutionized the public’s

FACTS ABOUT perception of nursing (not the

FLORENCE image of a doctor’s handmaiden)
NIGHTINGALE
and the method for educating
nurses.
  Licensure of nurses started

4. Period of  Specialization of Hospital and

Contemporary
Nursing / diagnosis
20th Century
 Training of Nurses in diploma
program
  Development of Baccalaureate
4. Period of and advance degree programs
Contemporary
Nursing /  Scientific and technological
20th Century development as well as social

changes mark this period.

  Health is perceived as a
fundamental human right

 Nursing involvement in
4. Period of community health
Contemporary
Nursing /  Technological advances –
20th Century disposable supplies and
equipments

 Expanded roles of nurses was

developed
  WHO was established by the

4. Period of United Nations

Contemporary
Nursing /  Aerospace Nursing was developed
20th Century
 Use of atomic energies for medical
diagnosis, treatment
  Computers were utilized-data
collection, teaching, diagnosis,
4. Period of
Contemporary inventory, payrolls, record
Nursing / keeping, and billing.
20th Century
 Use of sophisticated equipment
for diagnosis and therapy.