Botong Francisco, a National Artist of the Philippines, was commissioned by the Philippine Government for his work

for The Progress of Medicine in the Philippines. Declared as a National Treasure in 2011, it is now displayed in the
National Museum for Fine Arts in Manila, Philippines.

Instructions: Reflect on the paintings of this masterpiece and answer the following questions.

1. How is the evolution of nursing as a profession depicted on the paintings?

In the pre-colonial era of the Philippines, the act of nursing someone who is ill or injured hasn’t always been
the main focus of the native Filipinos. As depicted in the first painting, the focal point is the Priestess who seem to be
calling out the heavens to heal the sick. This gives us the idea that although the act of caregiving and nursing, most
probably done by women in the villages or the Priestess, is done even before western ideas came, the Filipinos at that
time still regard the act of calling the help of the heavens as the greatest mean to heal the sick.

In the Spanish colonial era, Filipinos have found nature as a bounty source of medicine to prevent or even
heal an illness believed to be caused by mystic spirits and creatures. Although still conjunct to beliefs of supernatural
beings, mysticism and superstitions, the nursing of the sick and ill may have started to play a huge role in the healing
of the sick. As depicted in the second painting, we can see a person nursing and assisting a woman in labor and another
man who seem to be in he, driving away evil spirits was believed still conjunct to beliefs of mysticism and superstitions.

2. Do the paintings show "theory application"? Explain your answer.

Yes, it does. The theory and miracles done made by Florence Nightingale in the Crimean War has taken the
western world by storm. As a matter of fact, we can see how health and proper sanitation, an application of
Nightingale’s Environmental Theory, is being imposed by the Americans in the third painting and applied even in the
modern hospital setting depicted on the fourth painting.

3. Which of the four paintings caught your attention? and why?

All of the paintings were equally beautiful and nostalgic, but the painting that really caught my attention was
the third one. Despite the unfortunate events of their colonization, Americans dawned the era of modern medicine in
the country. Looking at it makes feel grateful because of the fact that they brought with them western knowledge and
ideologies that transformed our society and recalibrated our minds as modern Filipino.

4. What did you learn from these topics of History of Nursing and Theories?

Being introduced to these topics has given me knowledge about the foundations and history of nursing, as
well as the theories that govern it. Attending to the discussion made me understand how nursing evolved through
the different historic events such as Crimean War, which drove Florence Nightingale to manipulate the environment
of barrack hospital and reduce the mortality rate from 42% to 2%, molded and help in the conceptualization of
theories, and most especially, the historical era of nursing’s search for specialized knowledge which brought upon
theories that made nursing to become a profession.