How has nursing assessment changed?

Published

Specializes in Cardiac.

My question to nurses who started their careers in decades past is how has the nursing assessment changed over the course of your professional practice?

For instance, were you trained in the 60s and 70s to auscultate a pts heart and lung sounds? I'm watching a movie focusing on the lives of nurses from the 70s and these nurses don't seem to have much professional training, however that is not the focus of the movie. I'm just curious as to how accurate this portrayal is...

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in retired LTC.

Back in the dark ages, I was also taught to do bowel sounds. And I can to percuss too!

And we didn't have all the bells & whistles and monitors and scanners to work with either!

PS - Just curious - what show were you watching?

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Cardiac.

PS - Just curious - what show were you watching?

"The Student Nurses," it's on Netflix.

It's pretty much a groovy show full of big-bosomed student nurses jumping into bed with several different suitors. Oh, and there's motorcycles and LSD.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
"The Student Nurses," it's on Netflix.

It's pretty much a groovy show full of big-bosomed student nurses jumping into bed with several different suitors. Oh, and there's motorcycles and LSD.

...And they're not listening to heart and lung sounds??? {{gasp!!!}}

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in MDS/ UR.
Back in the dark ages, I was also taught to do bowel sounds. And I can to percuss too!

And we didn't have all the bells & whistles and monitors and scanners to work with either!

PS - Just curious - what show were you watching?

In between running the autoclave!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in ICU.

Hmmm. I can certainly see why you are "Kool-aide" ha ha. I guess you would be surprised to hear that nurses in the 70's knew how to assess a patient, and some even had bachelor and master's degrees! Nursing isn't a new thing, you know!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Cardiac.
Nursing isn't a new thing, you know!

I don't mean to insult anyone, I'm just curious to see if there are differences in training from then to now.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in MDS/ UR.

Yeah, I spent a whole semester in my OB rotation. I got 8 weeks in the OR. I actually worked a full month 32 hour/weeks as a nurse my senior year. late 70's.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.
I don't mean to insult anyone, I'm just curious to see if there are differences in training from then to now.
We were taught intense assessment skills as we didn't have all the bells and whistles to monitor patients.

Training was intense... we had a ton of bedside skills and practice from several clinicals a week. In the years before me the nursing students spent everyday working in clinical settings.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.
"The Student Nurses," it's on Netflix.

It's pretty much a groovy show full of big-bosomed student nurses jumping into bed with several different suitors. Oh, and there's motorcycles and LSD.

This is an insulting portrayal of nurses and nursing.... nothing could be furthest from the truth. As far as I'm concerned.... it's trash.
Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Cardiac.

Training was intense... we had a ton of bedside skills and practice from several clinicals a week. In the years before me the nursing students spent everyday working in clinical settings.

Esme, thank you for your reply. I felt like my ASN program prepared me well, but I would like to know more about the differences between nursing school "then" and now. I will ask some of my coworkers about their experiences, I think.

I completely agree that most people rely on equipment and monitors and not clinical assessment of the pt. I worked in a resource pool as an aide before becoming an RN and I felt like you could see this difference in medsurg and critical care. Critical care, in my opinion, paid more attention to monitors than they do the pt at times.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Cardiac.
This is an insulting portrayal of nurses and nursing.... nothing could be furthest from the truth. As far as I'm concerned.... it's trash.

I agree, it was very insulting. I watched it through, but it did make me upset. If you haven't seen "Nurses: If Florence Could See Us Now," you should rent it. It's on Netflix! Very inspirational.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Join the Discussion