History of Community Nursing Matrix As long as people have existed, they needed to look after their health. As a result, the healthcare industry was born. Nurses were a vital part of that growing community. This paper will approach three different historical periods in the United States, discuss the nurse’s role in the community in regards to the major health issues of that period, how they partnered with the community to create new programs and finish with an intellectual discussion on how Jean Watson’s theory of Caring can be applied to the nurse’s role for each historical period. Period 1-- 1800s: In the early year of American settlement , female head of the family provided the care for sick in the family (Stanhope,
By using this factor, nurses could teach the community about diseases and how to prevent them. Period 2—1930s: In 1930s, the economical crisis influenced the development of nursing (Stanhope, Lancaster, 2008). During this period number of employed nurses and in the hospital and community were reduced because of reducing funding for nursing services (Stanhope, Lancaster, 2008). National Organization for Public Health Nursing or, NOPHN’s last minute telegraphs and lobbying helped public health nursing to include under federal relief program (Stanhope, Lancaster, 2008). The Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) supported nurses employment by increasing grants-in-aid for state programs of home medical care (Stanhope, Lancaster, 2008). FERA also helped to prevent closures of visiting nurses agencies by purchasing nursing care from them (Stanhope, Lancaster, 2008). In 1930s, expansion of federal government affected the structure of community health resources, which was the beginning of a new era for public nursing (Stanhope, Lancaster, 2008). The U.S. Public Health Service for the first time appointed a nurse who provided consultation services to state departments (Stanhope, Lancaster, 2008). Among 1931 and 1938,