Florence Nightingale Brief Bio
British Nurse, Administrator and Writer, Lady with the Lamp
The life and work of Florence Nightingale, pioneer of modern nursing.
Florence Nightingale, British pioneer of modern nursing, called the "lady with the lamp" or "Angel of Crimea," contributed to reforms in the hygiene and sanitation of military hospitals. She stands as the model of nurses and those hopefuls who want to pursue a nursing profession in which her pioneering work is well documented.
Early Years of Florence Nightingale
Florence Nightingale was born in Florence, Italy, on May 12, 1820, the second of two daughters. Her father, William Nightingale, a wealthy landowner of Embly Park, Hampshire, took responsibility for his two daughters' education, teaching them modern languages, history, philosophy and mathematics. Like every wealthy girl of her class, Nightingale was exposed to her family's social standing.
A Calling to Care
At seventeen, she felt called by God to some unnamed great cause. Florence's mother, Fanny Nightingale was primarily concerned with finding her daughter a good husband. She was therefore upset when Florence rejected the marriage proposal of Lord Houghton. There were other suitors she likewise refused.
At the age of twenty-five, she told her parents she wanted to become a nurse. Her parents opposed the idea, as nursing then was associated with working class women and hospitals, filthy and untidy. Florence remained adamant. In 1845, she began visiting hospitals and health facilities to collect more information on them.
Nursing Career Training
Nightingale's desire to build a career in nursing was reinforced when she met Elizabeth Blackwell at St. Bartholomew's Hospital in London. Blackwell was the first woman to qualify as a doctor in the United States. Having overcome considerable prejudice to achieve her ambition, Blackwell encouraged Nightingale.
In 1851, Nightingale's parents finally gave her permission to train as a nurse at the Institute of Protestant Deaconnesses in Kaiserwerth, Germany. Two years later, she accepted a position as superintendent of the Institution for the Care of Sick Gentlewomen in London and tried to make it a model hospital at that time. She also trained nurses, ensuring their competence.
Nightingale and the Crimean War
The year 1854 was Nightingale's greatest challenge as a nurse. This was the time of the Crimean War when the British Army embarked on a military campaign against the Russians in Crimea, a place near the Black Sea. Medical supplies were difficult to transport. The soldiers died, lay wounded, or got sick with cholera or dysentery. The British hospital in Scutari, Turkey had hardly any facilities and insufficient doctors. One of Nightingale's influential friends, Sidney Herbert, Secretary of War, asked Nightingale to go to Scutari, supervise a team of nurses and assist the doctors there. She immediately relented.
Nightingale improved conditions immensely, essentially managing the medical complex, including handling politics and in-fighting, providing order and discipline among the nurses. The patients' death rate reduced tremendously.
Despite all dangerous exposure to illnesses and diseases, including dysentery and fever that almost killed her, Nightingale stood firm in her commitment and dedication at Scutari until the British were evacuated from Turkey in July 1856. Her achievements there made her the war's English national hero.
Final Years
After her return to England, Nightingale devoted herself to medical reforms and wrote about the importance of sanitation and diet for good health. She established the Nightingale School and Home for training nurses at St. Thomas's Hospital in London in 1860. She was completely bedridden in 1896. In 1907, she was the first woman appointed to the Order of Merit by Queen Victoria. She died in August 13, 1910, aged 90. Five years after her death, the Crimean War Monument was erected to honor the "lady with the lamp."
Sources:
- Dictionary of Women's Biography, Compiler and Editor, Jennifer Uglow, Revising Editor on Third Edition, Maggy Hendry, London: Macmillan (1999)
- The Giant Book of Influential Women by Deborah G. Felder, London: The Book Company (1997)
