HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF PSYCHIATRIC NURSING:

History is a  record of opportunities, recognized and informed,  that produce profound changes in a given field. History of psychiatry and psychiatric nursing illustrates this, and is based on this concept.  In  this unit, you will study how psychiatric nursing of  today has developed from the time of in-humane care  to the care of the mentally ill. As you know that mental  illness was always associated with ignorance superstions and fears. Mentally  ill  patient went through a  lot of torture and problems for lack of development in  the field of psychiatry. With the introduction of understanding of the human behaviour during the later part of the 19th century,  it brought in  the change  in  care and attitude towards the mentally ill patients.  

Patient care has changed dramatically since 1930's and psychiatric nurses have kept pace with  the changing trends of  care.  In  1882, "celebration for psychiatric nurse" was held at Virgina, and  the Mclean Asylum Training School for nurses was identified as a pioneering institution in mental health. It was the first formally organized training school conducted within a mental hospital. In 1882, Mclean Hospital also initiated training in Psychiatric Nursing at Waverly,Massachusetts.  

In 1886, 15 women graduated  in  the 1st division. So in  this unit you will study about the development of  psychiatric nursing, in  general and Indianpsychiatric nursing, in particular. You will also learn about the major contributions in the field of  psychiatry and psychiatric nursing.