Nurses are powerful people, whether they know it or not. Looking at the history of our country, you find nurses making bold leadership decisions that changed our world. In our young country, nursing was once considered a woman’s profession. As a matter of fact, there was a time, not so long ago, when teaching children and serving as a professional nurse were the only socially acceptable jobs available to women.
Enter: Men in Nursing
Here’s an interesting fact: The first nursing school was founded in India, circa 250 B.C., and only men were thought to be “pure” enough to become nurses.
The man to be considered to be the “first” American male nurse came to our country by accident and didn’t live long enough to do much good, but his intentions were honorable. Friar Juan de Mena’s ship, en route from Mexico to Spain, crashed into the Texas Coast during a hurricane in 1554. He survived the shipwreck but was attacked by local residents and died from an arrow in the back.
Much later, the then-superintendent of Pennsylvania Hospital School of Nursing for Men (1914-1965) struggled for the rights of men to serve as nurses and sought membership for men in the American Nurses Association (ANA). A student at the school, Nurse Luther Christman was the first man to join ANA, even though he’d been rejected by the U.S. Surgeon General to serve in military combat as a nurse. (It was 1955 before men were allowed to serve as military nurses.)
Men were forbidden to attend most state-supported nursing schools until 1982. Christman founded the American Assembly for Men in Nursing (AAMN). Nurse Luther Christman died in 2011, and he continues to be respected and recognized as one of the trailblazers in the field of nursing.
Mary Ann Bickerdyke
One of the first powerful nurses in the country was Mary Ann Bickerdyke, who cared for wounded Union soldiers during the Civil War. She was a single mom, supporting herself and two sons by practicing as a “botanic physician” in Gettysburg. When a Union volunteer physician wrote about the filthy, disorganized and needy military hospitals, Gettysburg residents collected $500 worth of medical supplies and sent Bickerdyke to deliver them to Cairo, Illinois.
She quickly gained Ulysses S. Grant’s appreciation and was made Chief of Nursing, and she was the only woman allowed in the general’s camp. When the Union army moved south, Bickerdyke went with them, setting up hospitals where needed.
Stories of her fights for improved quality of patient care are numerous: she once saw a staff member wearing clothes that were meant for wounded patients and ordered him to strip, right there, in public and hand over the garments. She insisted on scrubbing every surface clean, and woe to the physician who drank too much whiskey! Mary Ann Bickerdyke won most of her fights. When the staff complained to General Sherman about the feisty nurse, he said, “Well, I can do nothing for you; she outranks me!”
Hazel Johnson-Brown
The first black nurse to take her nursing skills above and beyond patient care was Hazel Johnson-Brown, a military nurse and nursing educator who became the first black female general in the United States Army. She joined the army in 1955 after President Harry Truman banned segregation and discrimination in the armed forces.
She served in Japan and Korea, and while in the army earned her Master of Science, Nursing degree (MSN) and later a doctorate in education administration. Later, she was promoted to Chief of the Army Nurse Corps (Again, the first black woman to hold that position.), and that same year, 1979, she was promoted to brigadier general.
Even after her retirement, Brown continued her efforts as a nursing advocate and educator. The lesson we should take from her hard work and accomplishments – her life – is that she never stopped learning and growing, personally and professionally.
Family, we must never lose our drive. We must be persistent in following our dreams. Nothing can stop you! We must let the power of our passion propel us into becoming skilled in our field. We are all great, and we can all become greater. The question is, are you willing to do what needs to be done to achieve the greatness that is destined for you? -Hazel Johnson Brown
Volunteers: Nurses Changing the World
If travel and working disaster relief sites appeals to you, even if you can’t afford to do it full-time, volunteer nurses are desperately needed worldwide. Many nurses take their annual vacation time and select a project, clinic, or area of the globe where they can serve. As a volunteer out of country, you also gain specialty medical knowledge that may prove useful in your career. Tropical clinics and desert field hospitals are an example of places where you will learn from your volunteer experience.
More than 15,000 nurses volunteer – and some are paid – with the American Red Cross. The American Nurses Association says, “The time to get prepared and be ready to volunteer is not when the disaster occurs, but before it strikes. Any registered nurse who believes that he/she will want to respond at the time of a disaster should pre-register with one of the many disaster registries and response organizations that already exist.”
Their website offers registration with the American Red Cross, National Disaster Medical System, Medical Reserve Corps, and Community Emergency Response Team.
Cute enough to stop your heart, skilled enough to restart it sandyyyy_cx #nursingstudents #ecpi… https://t.co/1cwAUHlSwU
— Amelia Elizabeth (@nrseamelia) July 21, 2015
Determination IS Power . . . Become a Nurse!
When you become a nursing student, you’ve already made a powerful decision that will impact your life and the lives of those who love you: you’re going to change your quality of life by learning and growing. Registered Nurses make an even greater impact, because their knowledge and compassion makes the world a better place for others.
ECPI University's College of Nursing offers 4 nursing programs for current and future nurses, so whether you’re just getting started or looking to propel your nursing career, request more information today. If you’re determined to succeed, it could be the Best Decision You Ever Make!
DISCLAIMER – ECPI University makes no claim, warranty or guarantee as to actual employability or earning potential to current, past or future students or graduates of any educational program we offer. The ECPI University website is published for informational purposes only. Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of information contained on the ECPI.edu domain; however, no warranty of accuracy is made. No contractual rights, either expressed or implied, are created by its content.
Gainful Employment Information – Practical Nursing - Diploma
Gainful Employment Information – Registered Nursing - Associate
Gainful Employment Information – RN to BSN - Bachelor
Gainful Employment Information – Master of Science in Nursing
For more information about ECPI University or any of our programs click here: http://www.ecpi.edu/ or http://ow.ly/Ca1ya.