The nursing profession, as a whole, as well as the role of the nurse have evolved dramatically over the past several decades. I personally have witnessed the changing face of nursing during my 30+ years in the profession. Gone are the days when nurses were thought of as little more than helpers or assistants for physicians. Today's nurses are healthcare professionals in their own right, playing an important and vital role in providing excellent healthcare.
Looking back to when I was in nursing school, and then starting my nursing career, I remember many things that are no longer in use, or things that have transformed over the years. Gone are the days of paper chart, replaced with electronic medical records. Gone are the nursing caps that distinguished the nurse from the rest of the healthcare team.
Here is a partial list of things I remember from days gone by.
Back in the day...
Team nursing
Primary care nursing
Longer patient stays (Patients were actually able to recuperate in the hospital rather than being sent home too soon. There was no such thing as same-day surgery.)
Nurses wore uniforms which consisted of white dresses, white hose, white lace-up oxford shoes, and, of course ... white nursing caps!
Only OR staff and physicians wore scrubs.
The Kardex, a large folded card, was used as an important document of all patient activities, meds, etc. And it was hand-written in pencil so it could be erased and updated as needed. Talk about document tampering!
Requisitions were composed on a typewriter.
Patients were called Mr. or Mrs.
Gloves were used for sterile procedures only. Universal precautions did not exist.
The only lifting machines we had were male aides ... and of course ourselves.
Nurses bent and broke off needles from used syringes
IV pumps were used only in Peds and ICU. Nurses had to calculate the drip rate using the second hand on their watch and a roller clamp to regulate the flow.
Heavy glass IV bottles were still in use
The charge nurse made rounds with the doctors ... and carried the heavy metal charts.
When a doctor arrived at the nurses' station, it was expected that a nurse would stand up and offer her seat....and the doctor never refused
Male nurses were very rare
Cold metal bedpans were offered to patients.
All patients were offered a daily bath and back rub
There were no fitted sheets. Remember hospital corners??
Glass thermometers were still in use.
Nurses notes and vital signs were recorded using a pen with 4 colors of ink as different colors of ink were used on different shifts. Actually, only 3 were used since there were 3 shifts.
Surgery patients were admitted the night before surgery so their preps could be started that evening.
Nurses smoked in the nurses' lounge.
Cancer was almost always a death sentence
Medicine was dispensed by the med nurse carrying a tray with small paper cups of pills and different colored med cards.
Four-year BSN programs were not as plentiful. Most nurses graduated from hospital-based Diploma or ASN programs.
State boards were 2 grueling days of exams that were completed with number 2 pencils. No computerized tests in those days.
Feel free to add items that you remember from the past, even if that past does not seem that long ago. Changes are occurring at an even faster pace in the digital and electronic age of today. What do you think of some of the changes???
In nursing school we had to wear white uniforms, and because the dresses were much cheaper than the pants and tunic option, I got to wear dresses. Knee length, and straight, they were totally impractical. It was almost impossible to get things off the floor without appearing lewd. It did look rather professional, though, I have to admit, with the white hose and proper white shoes. One memorable day, an elderly "gentleman" exposed himself to me and then cackled about it. I was rather flustered and upset. An hour or so later, I bent over to pick up his CPM for his knee replacement. The bell of my stethoscope caught the hem of my dress and WHOOPS! I bared everything from the waist down. He got a nice view of proper nude colored panties encased in white hose. My instructor just looked at me and said, "Guess you got him back for exposing himself."
I have worn dresses at other times in my career. I had a cute A-line jumper that came to mid shin. Very comfortable, and very modest. It was long enough and full enough that I could do anything I needed to do without baring anything. I hated it when it finally was too worn to wear, and I've never been able to find another one. I have seen a nice maxi scrub skirt in the Uniform Advantage catalog that I'm seriously considering. Now that I'm doing public health, I don't have to worry about crawling under beds to retrieve Foley bags and climbing up on top of beds to move patients.
"Nurses had to calculate the drip rate using the second hand on their watch and a roller clamp to regulate the flow"
Knowing how to manually (or mentally) calcuate drip rates and regulate flow is skill that IMHO all nurses should know and keep keen upon. You never know where your practice will take you and or under what conditions you will be nursing.
Everthing from terrorist attacks and natural disasters to simply a poorly run facility, you'll never know when you're going to be short of even absent of pumps and going to have to go "old school".
I am a senior student and have enjoyed reading through these posts tremendously as I think about my entrance into nursing which will hopefully be very soon. I just wanted to let you know we are taught how to calculate drip rates and must be validated on them. I also had a patient at the hospital in my second med-surg clinical that wasn't hooked up to a pump and although the bag had the drip rate on it my instructor made me calculate it myself first before hanging and adjusting it appropriately :)
Specializes in Education, FP, LNC, Forensics, ED, OB.
Next to vintage nurses caps the second "in" thing seems to be those capes. Don't know who is wearing them but just as with caps they are going for big money on eBay and elsewhere. Perhaps it has something to do with the recent explosion of "Twilight" and other vampire related media.
SirI you could always don your cape and swoop down the halls scaring the students! *LOL*
DoGoodThenGo, I didn't need my cape to scare the students. It helped, however.
Specializes in Education, FP, LNC, Forensics, ED, OB.
I participated in a webinar this morning on the subject of Preterm Labor presented by March of Dimes. The doctor discuss old methods of tocolysis, including IV alcohol. I actually work with a couple of older nurses who remember doing this for preterm patients. Sounds like a lot more fun that MgSO4!
Oh, and talk about some very drunk patients on the IV alcohol.
Have seen photos of US military nurses in both long and short capes.
Just imagine showing up for duty looking like this! Am willing to bet by the end of eight or twelve hours you'd have tons of "digits" if not offers of marriage. *LOL*
I always call patients Mr or Miss ______ unless they prefer something else or are my age or younger. I'm in my 20's; is this not standard practice? I think it's rude to call someone 50 years older than me by his/her first name.
Why is it rude?
I always say, "I'm Saoirse and I'll be your nurse today. What would you like me to call you?"
Most often I get "Betty" or "Bill", not "Mrs Jones".
Specializes in Education, FP, LNC, Forensics, ED, OB.
And, I knew I still wanted to be a nurse after doing this for almost 4 years:
Front:
Back:
Earned after 200 hours of volunteer work. I received a stripe on the cap after 250 hours. I was so proud of this accomplishment and it was the beginning of a life-long career in nursing later. :)
And, I knew I still wanted to be a nurse after doing this for almost 4 years:
I love it!
Don't think many places still have "candy stripers" anymore, much less give them a cap! Lord knows just to volunteer at most hospitals today is almost like applying to work for pay with a long application/interview process and background checks.
On a night like tonight bet those in areas affected by hurricane Sandy would love to have a nice long nurse's cape!
Something warm perhaps with a hood that is waterproof or at least resistant. Heavy Loden wool would do but something modern such as a nylon or other man-made outer fiber with a Thinsulate lining like a good down outer gear or things they sell for those whom do outdoor cold winter sports would work a treat.
Just saw news footage of NYU nurses and other staff members working in the cold driving rain to transfer patients into waiting ambulances for transfer/evacuation, all wearing nothing but scrubs.
monkeybug
716 Posts
In nursing school we had to wear white uniforms, and because the dresses were much cheaper than the pants and tunic option, I got to wear dresses. Knee length, and straight, they were totally impractical. It was almost impossible to get things off the floor without appearing lewd. It did look rather professional, though, I have to admit, with the white hose and proper white shoes. One memorable day, an elderly "gentleman" exposed himself to me and then cackled about it. I was rather flustered and upset. An hour or so later, I bent over to pick up his CPM for his knee replacement. The bell of my stethoscope caught the hem of my dress and WHOOPS! I bared everything from the waist down. He got a nice view of proper nude colored panties encased in white hose. My instructor just looked at me and said, "Guess you got him back for exposing himself."
I have worn dresses at other times in my career. I had a cute A-line jumper that came to mid shin. Very comfortable, and very modest. It was long enough and full enough that I could do anything I needed to do without baring anything. I hated it when it finally was too worn to wear, and I've never been able to find another one. I have seen a nice maxi scrub skirt in the Uniform Advantage catalog that I'm seriously considering. Now that I'm doing public health, I don't have to worry about crawling under beds to retrieve Foley bags and climbing up on top of beds to move patients.