On The Cover
200 Years Of Saving Lives From Florence Nightingale to modern nurses
Florence Nightingale was born into a wealthy family on May 12, 1820 and was educated by her father, who was known for his liberal, humanitarian views.
Florence rebelled against her mother and sister, who wanted her to marry, and worked hard to educate herself in the art and science of nursing.
In 1854, when reports arrived in Britain of the horrific conditions for soldiers wounded in the Crimean War, Florence, along with 38 women volunteer nurses and 15 Catholic nuns, were sent to Scutari. They found overworked medical staff, a lack of medicines and poor hygiene. Mass infections were rife, such as typhoid, typhus, cholera and dysentery.
Florence sent pleas for what was needed. Isambard Kingdom Brunel designed a pre-fabricated hospital that could be built in England and shipped out. The government sent out the Sanitary Commission, who sorted out sewage problems and improved ventilation.
After Florence implemented hand washing and other hygiene practices, the death rate plunged from 42% to 2%.
At this time, reports on “The Lady With The Lamp” began appearing in The Times and she became a heroine. The Nightingale Fund was established; Florence used the money to set up her first training school at St Thomas’ Hospital in 1860.
In the 1870s, she mentored Linda
Richards, an American nurse, enabling her to establish similar training schools for US nurses.
By the early 1880s, several Nightingale nurses had become matrons at leading hospitals around the country and in 1883 Florence became the first recipient of the Royal Red Cross.
From 1857 onwards Florence suffered bouts of illness, now believed to be brucellosis, which kept her bedridden for periods of time. However, she continued her academic work, particularly in the fields of social reform and field hospital planning.
She is also hailed as a pioneer in the visual presentation of information and statistics. Time and again
she got her messages across to politicians and civil servants with the use of diagrams and histograms in such a way as to convince them to act on her suggestions. Over the course of her life she wrote 200 books, pamphlets and articles on subjects as diverse as nursing, sanitation in India, and theology.
Florence died in her sleep in 1910, aged 90. Her family turned down an offer of burial in Westminster Abbey and she is buried at St Margaret’s Church in East Wellow, Hants, near her childhood home.
She left behind an example of compassion, commitment and diligence which the nursing profession has had at its core ever since. The Nightingale Pledge is recited by nurses at the end of their training and more than ever, recently, we have had cause to be grateful for their devotion and selfless care. Florence would be proud.