Irene L. Beland facts for kids

Irene L. Beland (born June 21, 1906 – died August 15, 2000) was an important American nurse. She was a teacher for nurses and studied how to give patients the best care. This is called patient-centered care, which means focusing on what each patient needs.

Her Life Story

Irene Beland was born on June 21, 1906, in Loda, Illinois. When she was seven, her family moved to Osage, Iowa. After finishing high school, she worked as a teacher in a country school for two years.

Becoming a Nurse

Later, Irene decided to become a nurse. She joined the St. Mary's Hospital School of Nursing in Rochester, Minnesota. Three years later, she earned her nursing diploma.

Irene then went to the University of Minnesota. She studied physics and biochemistry there. She earned her first degree in 1937 and a master's degree in 1938. For her master's project, she studied how certain medicines affected frogs.

Teaching Career

From 1938 to 1940, Irene taught medical nursing at the University of Minnesota. She also taught at St. Mary's Hospital School of Nursing and Minneapolis General Hospital until 1947.

In 1947, Irene joined Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. She taught there until she retired in 1970.

Important Contributions

Irene Beland helped create one of the first special programs for nurses in the country. This program was for nurses who wanted to become experts in medical and surgical nursing.

In 1965, she wrote a very important book called Clinical Nursing: Pathophysiological and Psychosocial Approaches. This book was special because it looked at nursing in a new way. It focused on treating the whole person, not just their illness. This is known as a "holistic" approach. Irene wrote or helped write three more versions of this book.

In 1983, she was honored by the American Academy of Nursing. This showed how much her work was valued in the nursing world.

Irene Beland passed away on August 15, 2000, in Rochester, Minnesota. Her important papers and writings are kept at Boston University's Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center.