Florence Nightingale is a famous Italian nurse who was born May 12, 1820. She was the first modern nurse, a British social reformer who also studied statistics. As a child, she participated in Philanthropy. She ministered to the ill and poor in a village adjacent to her estate. By 16, she had realized that nursing would be her life’s work. When she told them that she wanted a career as a nurse, they were not pleased. During this time, it was considered that a woman of Nightingale’s status would marry a wealthy man and take on a profession that was seen by the upper classes as menial.
Florence Nightingale received her education at the Kaiserswerth Institution of Protestant Deaconesses. She was a nurse in the Crimean War and helped wounded soldiers. She became known as “The Lamp Lady” because she made rounds in the evenings. She was able to use her mathematic skills in order to calculate the changes in mortality as medical facilities adopted sanitary practices. The results were then implemented in all British army hospitals. The media overstated her achievements during World War II, but they later became more widely accepted. She established her nursing college at St Thomas Hospital London in 1860. This was the beginning of professional nursing. This was the first non-denominational nursing school in history. It now belongs to King’s College London. Her birthday is marked by an International Nurses Day, which is also a day to celebrate a pledge. The school had a mission to train nurses in hospitals to care for the poor and teach. She was a role model for compassion and dedication to patient care. She was more than a nurse. Her writing skills were impressive and varied. Her main focus was on spreading medical education. She used a simple language that people with low literacy levels could easily understand. She popularised the visual presentation of statistics. In her writing, she included mysticism and religion. After training in Germany, France and London, she was appointed Superintendent of the Establishment for Gentlewomen in Illness.
In her Mayfair room, 10 South Street in London, she passed away peacefully on 13 August 1910 in her sleep. She was laid to rest in the churchyard of St. Margaret Church East Wellow.
