The Way We Were: JGN From Then to Now

The 50th anniversary of the Journal of Gerontological Nursing is a milestone that calls for reflection on the many important contributions made by our clinicians, edu- cators, and researchers to the care of older adults. This article was written to high- light not only the issues that have been the focus of our professional attention but also the accomplishments that gerontological nurses have made during the past half century. Edna Stilwell, the inaugural editor, laid out nine objectives for the jour- nal in the first issue, which was published in 1975. Using those objectives as a lens to our past, the >400 editorials written from 1975 to the present are summarized and discussed using the framework Stilwell provided. The gerontological nurses who wrote these editorials were visionaries whose efforts advanced and continue to advance the quality of care that nurses provide to older adults today.