From “First Aid Rooms” to Advanced Practice Nursing

A Glimpse Into the History of Emergency Nursing

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to provide a brief history of the development of advanced practice emergency nursing in the United States, noting its roots in the “First Aid Rooms” of the Henry Street Settlement and focusing on its formal inception as a nursing specialty in the 1970s. The development of the Emergency Nurses Association is also highlighted. The program at the University of Virginia is used as an example of what was occurring throughout the nation. Data are analyzed within the context of the social and political environment of the United States during this era as well as within the context of the history of healthcare.