HX of the Cap Pin and Lamp......

Hi y'all,

Need info on the origins of the nursing cap, pin and lamp. Can only relate to the lamp with Florence Nightingale. Appreciate any help.

Atina Last edit by suebird3 on Aug 1, '06
Both the Cap and pin are unique to the school one graduated from. Suebird

Quote from atinahi y'all, need info on the origins of the nursing cap, pin and lamp. can only relate to the lamp with florence nightingale. appreciate any help. atina

THE PINNING CEREMONYDr. Susan Opas, a professor at UCLA's School of Nursing in Los Angeles, provides a rich historical report of the nursing pin and the pinning ceremony in an article from December 1999 RN magazine. Dr. Opas reports that the earliest badges given to those who tended the sick were presented to members of the Knights of the Order of the Hospital of St. John the Baptist, a religious order who tended to the ill and wounded Crusaders in the 12th Century.The tradition of the nursing pin and the ceremonial pinning we know today, actually originated in the 1860's at the Nightingale School of Nursing at St. Thomas Hospital in London. Having been recently awarded The Red Cross of St. George for her selfless service to the injured and dying in the Crimean War, Florence chose to extend this honor to her most outstanding graduate nurses by presenting each of them with a medal for excellence.The Wolverton Royal Hospital in England initiated the tradition of presenting all graduates with a badge. The first pin was presented to the graduating class of 1880 at the Bellevue Hospital of Nursing in New York City. The pin presented to graduates was both beautiful and symbolic. It featured a crane in the center for vigilance, encircled with a band of blue for constancy, and an outer band of red for mercy and relief of suffering. Dr. Opas reports that by 1916 the practice of pinning new nurses was common in schools throughout the United Kingdom and North America.CANDLE LIGHTINGWhen the nursing pinning ceremony was first initiated in the 1860's, the lamp was a symbol of the care and devotion the nurse administers to the sick and injured in the practice of nursing. After nurses were pinned, Nightingale would light a lamp and pass the flame to each nurse as they said the Pledge:Original Nightingale Pledge"I solemnly pledge myself before God and in the presence of this assembly:To pass my life in purity and to practice my profession faithfully; I will abstain from whatever is deleterious and mischievous and will not takeor knowingly administer any harmful drug; I will do all in my power to maintain and elevate the standard of my professionand will hold in confidence all personal matters committed to my keeping and allfamily affairs coming to my knowledge in the practice of my calling; With loyalty will I endeavor to aid the physician in his work and devote myselfto the welfare of those committed to my care." The lamp further represents Nightingale's famous 'Rounds At Night', and is symbolic of her dedication.CAPPINGWhat I know about caps is a black stripe was meant to memorialize the death of Florence, and signifies 'expert nurse'. In years past students would wear a plain cap, and upon graduation would receive a colored stripe unique to the the school or school colors. Capping was once a very important ceremony along with the lamp lighting, pinning, and Nightingale pledge. Many schools are bringing back the capping ceremony due to it's historical and professional significance. Although our student body voted down an actual ceremony, any graduate who wanted one was presented a cap during the pinning. We researched the original school cap, and had them made at Kay's Caps.

My school still does all of the above.Capping ceremony: freshmen get their caps, juniors get 1 stripe added, seniors have 2 stripes. Candles or miniature Nightingale lamps are lit and pledge is said.Graduation: seniors have 1 single stripe all the way around the cap and are pinned with the school pin. I wear mine everyday to work.

We are not doing students any good when we spoonfeed them answers to questions. Surely the OP knows how to do a Google search or other search function.Students need to learn how to research. I fear that the newer generations of nurses are not going to learn how to look for answers themselves. Not a slam on the OP, but students do this all the time here, and I am always amazed at people who so readily give them the answers.

With all respect, does anyone find the Nightingale pledge a little demeaning and outdated? Is there a discussion forum on this somewhere else?

But we also need to stop "eating our young." One of the biggest complaints of students and recent graduates is how rude, uncaring, and unhelpful more experienced RNs are to them when they need help. I agree that spoonfeeding is not the answer, but research shows that mentoring is a great way to develop great new practitioners. Let's "help" not "hinder" our future. I teach in a BSN program and practice anesthesia fulltime...I have seen both sides.

Nope...it is a tradition. It is no more outdated than the Hippocratic Oath taken by physicians. I personally like the tradition of the Nightingale Pledge...it is uniquely ours as nurses. It is not a binding legality, but a mere tradition of graduation for most schools. If you're referring to the "endeavor to aid the physician in his work" phrase...like it or not, that is a part of Nursing...even though there is much, much more to the profession. Just don't say that part if it greatly bothers you.

Quote from SkateBettyCANDLE LIGHTINGWhen the nursing pinning ceremony was first initiated in the 1860's, the lamp was a symbol of the care and devotion the nurse administers to the sick and injured in the practice of nursing. After nurses were pinned, Nightingale would light a lamp and pass the flame to each nurse as they said the Pledge:Original Nightingale Pledge"I solemnly pledge myself before God and in the presence of this assembly:To pass my life in purity and to practice my profession faithfully; I will abstain from whatever is deleterious and mischievous and will not takeor knowingly administer any harmful drug; I will do all in my power to maintain and elevate the standard of my professionand will hold in confidence all personal matters committed to my keeping and allfamily affairs coming to my knowledge in the practice of my calling; With loyalty will I endeavor to aid the physician in his work and devote myselfto the welfare of those committed to my care." The lamp further represents Nightingale's famous 'Rounds At Night', and is symbolic of her dedication.