Legitimacy in legacy: a discussion paper of historical scholarship published in the Journal of Advanced Nursing, 1976–2011

Abstract

Relative to other academic concerns, nursing scholarship affords little prominence to the topic of nursing history and less still to the history of practice, as evidenced in the outputs of one of nursing's major organs of scholarship. Not to assign due importance to the history of nursing and its practice demonstrates nursing's lack of disciplinary maturity.

Historical perspectives: a snapshot of women admitted to psychiatric facilities with psychosis or mania after childbirth in the late Victorian and inter‐war periods

“…This examination of historical healthcare records has provided legitimacy for current healthcare practice (Fealy et al . ) because it demonstrates the importance of two aspects found in modern practice: first, it demonstrates the need for a comprehensive and holistic health assessment that looks beyond the immediate concerns of justifying admission; and second it shows that modern treatments such as antibiotics, coupled with appropriate sanitary provisions during childbirth and the postnatal period, prevent life threatening infections. This second aspect presents an opportunity for healthcare professionals to examine the difficulties of fighting infections in an increasing antibiotic resistant environment.…”

“…Analysis of historical healthcare records presents an opportunity to examine how patient populations were described in the past (Fealy et al . ). This project examined the healthcare records of women admitted to two psychiatric hospitals in Sydney, New South Wales (NSW), Australia (Callan Park, or Rozelle and Gladesville Hospitals) with a diagnosis of psychosis or mania attributed to childbirth, childbearing, pregnancy or lactation in the late Victorian (1885–1895) and inter‐war (1925–1935) periods.…”

Instrument development and validation of a quality scale for historical research papers (QSHRP): a pilot study

“…Similarly in the UK, a systematic review of historical research papers published from 1976–2011 in JAN concluded that the majority of historical research papers, despite increasingly prescriptive guidelines, failed to report on aspects of methodological rigour specific to historical research (Fealy et al . ). A literature review indicated that various tools exist to evaluate historical research (Garraghan , Gottschalk , Hackett Fisher , Shafer , McCullagh , Howell & Prevenier ); however, the majority focus on the evaluation of the sources of evidence or source criticism.…”

The legitimacy of the nurse practitioner as a non-medical surgical assistant: Historical evidence from Australia

“…Contribution to society is not just a contemporary phenomenon, but something that is demonstrated as a legacy through the recounting of historical events and their benefits to society (Fealy et al, 2013). Social legitimacy is confirmed when vocations; or individuals who represent a vocation; can demonstrate this contribution to society.…”