Virginia Avenel Henderson

1897-1996
Army School of Nursing,
Washington, D.C., 1921

• First full-time nursing instructor in Virginia
• Recipient of the Virginia Historical Nurse Leader Award
• Member of the American Nurses Association Hall of Fame
• Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing
• Authored one of the most widely used definitions of nursing
• Proposed plan to create districts within the Graduate Nurses Association of Virginia (now Virginia Nurses Association)

Virginia Avenel Henderson's national and international achievements made her the quintessential nurse of the twentieth century. Her professional career was launched in Virginia where she served as the first full-time nursing instructor at Norfolk Protestant School of Nursing and took an active role in the state nurses association. A pioneer nurse educator, Henderson was instrumental in pushing for the inclusion of psychiatric nursing in educational programs in Virginia.

Biography

Bibliography

"Henderson through her efforts as an author, researcher, scholar, consultant, and beloved teacher has touched the minds and hearts of thousands of nurses. In reading her writings, in listening to her speak, one is impressed with the clarity of her vision, prose, and insight into the nature of nursing's relations to patients."

Barbara Brodie, October 21, 1988