Saga - Evolution of Nursing Research - Part 1

This episode of the NLN Nursing EDge Unscripted Saga track is part 1 of 2 exploring the evolution of nursing research.

Dedicated to excellence in nursing, the National League for Nursing is the leading organization for nurse faculty and leaders in nursing education. Find past episodes of the NLN Nursing EDge podcast online. Get instant updates by following the NLN on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. For more information, visit NLN.org.

Transcript

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Welcome to this episode of Nursing EDge Unscripted Saga where we journey through  the history of nursing education using stories that connect the past to the  present and then our future as we reimagine our teaching, learning, and scholarship.  It is often said that the past teaches us about the present; to study history is to study change.  This year Saga gives voice to nursing through the words of our early nurse leaders who organized a  discipline and carved out systems to formalize the education of nurses throughout the United States.  In Their Own Words illuminates the visionary work of NLN pathfinders who question traditional  curriculum paradigms and in the process co-created standards for nursing education to build the  discipline of nursing. The focus of this Saga both parts one and two will be on the evolution  of nursing research in its ongoing growth and importance to the discipline of nursing. As  with curriculum, the formalization of research in nursing education as a unique story that aligns  with the National League for Nursing's ongoing core value of excellence. This Saga - Evolution  of Nursing Research part one - will focus on the deep connection between research and the  need for accreditation facing schools of nursing across the country in the mid to late 1920s. To fully capture the spirit of this evolution, we will tell the story through the words of  nursing education's early leaders documented from the proceedings of NLN annual conventions  specifically 1929 to 1932. These publications are part of the NLN Archives collection currently  housed at the Bates Center for the History of Nursing at the University of Pennsylvania.  All proceedings are digitalized and available online. Let's begin. Research in and of itself has always been a part of the discipline of nursing. The culture of nursing research has evolved  over the last 150 years recognizing Florence Nightingale's early research during the Crimean  War in the mid-1850s to today's National Institute of Nursing Research. Let's explore the story.  You will recall from our other Saga episodes that the nursing discipline first organized itself as  a Society of Superintendents of Training Schools for Nurses back in 1893 that later became what  we know now today as the National League for Nursing and the American Nurses Association.  Their goal back in the early 1900s was to work collaboratively to attain uniformity in the work  of nurses across the country and standardize the process of education. This work of setting  and maintaining standards was accomplished through numerous work committees within both organizations.  During the 35th annual meeting in 1929, Carolyn E. Gray, chair of the committee for the study of  nursing education in colleges and universities, gave an accounting of the results on three  

questionnaire studies. One: 4:31

to compile a list of schools of nursing with college and university  connections and the extent the schools offered courses leading to a degree. Two: to determine  the number of nursing schools seeking funding for nursing education. And finally three: to determine  the number of nursing students enrolled in seeking a degree following a uniform program.  While this is an example of only one NLNE committee at work, many other committees  were fast at work collecting and studying the discipline. For example, the committee  on grading, a short-term committee responsible for collecting outcome data from schools of nursing  across the country or the education committee, a committee responsible for curriculum development.  There was concern about overlap and duplication across committees so the superintendents created  a committee to study the functions and resources of the NLNE. This committee studied and analyzed  the work of all the League committees and those of other nursing organizations.  What they found in their work was a growing theme surrounding accreditation.  The discipline of nursing had been seeking uniformity and standardization since its inception, however, other disciplines had already established accrediting organizations. Academic institutions,  such as the North Central Association of Colleges and Universities or the American Association  of University Women, to name a couple. And so too had the professions, such as the American  Medical Association, the American Pharmaceutical Association, and the American Bar Association.  All were accrediting. There were no formal accrediting organizations focused on nursing. At the 35th annual meeting, Mary M. Roberts, chair of the committee to study the functions and  resources of the NLNE, shared their findings and one important point was highlighted:  the work of accrediting and research go hand in hand.  Linking accreditation with research was bold and intuitive. In January 1930, the committee  on research and accrediting was appointed. During the 36th annual report of superintendent's meeting  in 1930, Nellie Hawkinson, the new chair of this committee, reported the following recommendations:  

One: 7:43

the committee on research and accrediting would begin to set academic and professional  standards. These would come from the scientific studies carried out by the committee on grading.  

Two: 7:59

the need to have paid personnel carry out accrediting and research using experts  in the field to assure effectiveness.

And three: 8:11

a nurse qualified to do educational research be added as soon as possible to the League staff at headquarters.  Following a year of intense committee work, Mary M. Roberts, the chair of the committee on functions  and resources of the NLNE, reported during the 37th annual meeting that the work of these committees  demonstrated such value that they be set up in connection with a new research department  of the League and that the League accept the responsibility for accrediting schools of nursing.  This involves the setting up of a research department, which shall make both statistical  and field studies. And thus, research in nursing education was commissioned. With a focus on excellence, these forward-thinking leaders at the foresight to embrace research  as a means to achieve excellence in both practice and education. The operationalized  research to better inform standardization, paving the way for nursing accreditation.  In part two of this Saga, we will focus on the ongoing development of formal research within  the League, the methods of research and study, and the evolving dialogue on research and its  impact to clarify the issues before the nursing discipline then and now. And so the Saga continues and may our Saga continue as we bring to a close this episode  of Nursing EDge Unscripted Saga. thank you for joining us