Thesis

Florence Nightingale was an intelligent nurse, social reformer, and statistician. She believed at age 17 that God had called upon her to aid the ill and poor. Her life as a nurse and experience in various hospitals and infirmaries led to economical advancements of nursing and patient care, the creation of the National Health Service and professional nursing, as well as awareness of workhouse infirmary conditions in Great Britain.

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"Florence Nightingale in her room in South Street from a photograph by Miss Bosanquet, 1906"

"Florence Nightingale 1907 from a water-colour drawing by Miss F. Alicia de Biden Footner"

"Florence Nightingale 1887 from the picture by Sir William Richmond at Claydon"

Images from The Life of Florence Nightingale Volume 2 by Sir Edward Cook

“Let us be anxious to do well, not for selfish praise but to honor and advance the cause, the work we have taken up. Let us value our training not as it makes us cleverer or superior to others, but inasmuch as it enables us to be more useful and helpful to our fellow creatures, the sick, who most want our help. Let it be our ambition to be good nurses, and never let us be ashamed of the name of ‘nurse’.”  -Florence Nightingale

Historical Background