Florence Nightingale, often considered the founder of modern nursing, is someone I consider to be a true advocate for what she believes is right even if it challenges the “norm”. During the 1700s, nurses were seen as a less-than-ideal profession and often weren’t educated in a facilitated or structured manner. Florence Nightingale pushed for a central curriculum to train nurses. Even though this wouldn’t be common until the mid-20th century, she is still credited with being the catalyst for this movement. With patient sickness, illnesses, and diseases evolving, medical care, and nursing specifically, grew as well. “By 1960, over 170 college nursing programs dotted the country…Today, there are over 871 programs” (Texas Women’s University, 2019). Various regulating bodies were established during the 1900s, including the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, which developed the foundational requirements for accredited and educated nurses in America. Today, we see roughly 3 million nurses in our workforce, many of whom are furthering their education and diversifying their pathways by specializing in various branches of medicine (Texas Women’s University, 2019).
Evidence-based practice, or EBP, is “…identified as an appraisal and critique of recent and significant research to address a clinical question.” (Zimmerman, 2017). EBP became popularized in the 1970s due to a link found between better patient outcomes and interventions based on research utilization. The primal EBP model was purely research and data, whereas the newer, 21st-century model focuses on the context of the patient’s condition with the hope of supporting the clinician with their decision-making in the case. Zimmerman solidifies her case for EBP by stating, “Application of evidence into practice provides the basis for safer, more effective, and more efficient patient care practice areas.” (2017
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