In 1853, she was appointed Superintendent of the Hospital for Invalid Gentlewoman. Educated at home by their wealthy, well-bred father, Nightingale and her older sister Parthenope studied history, philosophy, mathematics, and classics; they also wrote weekly compositions. Her birthday - 12th May - is celebrated as the International Nurses Day. Though she was very attractive, she chose to remain a spinster as she believed marriage would hamper her calling. Throughout the U.S. Civil War, she was frequently consulted about how to best manage field hospitals. Characteristically, she had expressed the desire that her funeral be a quiet and modest affair, despite the public's desire to honor Nightingale—who tirelessly devoted her life to preventing disease and ensuring safe and compassionate treatment for the poor and the suffering. The family moved back to London when Florence was a young girl. When she was young Florence was very interested in mathematics. Florence Nightingale (12 May 1820 – 13 August 1910) was a celebrated English social reformer and statistician, and … Elizabeth Blackwell was the first woman to graduate from medical school in the United States. Florence Nightingale was born on May 12, 1820, in Florence, Italy, while her wealthy parents were on a tour of Europe. In October 1853, the Crimean War broke out. Nightingale remained at Scutari for a year and a half. She was very good friends with Sidney Herbert, Secretary of War and both were instrumental in the success of each other’s career. Florence was raised at Lea Hurst where she received classical education which included German, Italian and French. During the Crimean War, she and a team of nurses improved the unsanitary conditions at a British base hospital, greatly reducing the death count. Even though she could never come, she played an instrumental role in getting a Sanitary Department established by the Indian government. Florence Nightingale was born into an upper-class British family in Florence, Italy on the 12 May 1820.She had a fractious relationship with her mother who was class-conscious. Florence was born into a rich, well-connected British family. She announced her intention to become a nurse in 1844. Olympic gold medalist Florence Joyner brought style to track and field with form-fitting bodysuits, six-inch fingernails and amazing speed. Allied British and French forces were at war against the Russian Empire for control of Ottoman territory. Her family home was Lea Hurst in Derbyshire. Nightingale was a shy girl who did not want to be the centre of attention socially. To her surprise she was met with a hero's welcome, which the humble nurse did her best to avoid. In the early 1850s, Nightingale returned to London, where she took a nursing job in a Harley Street hospital for ailing governesses. https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/florence-nightingale-1401.php. Nightingale quickly got to work and tried to lower the death rate. International Nurses Day is celebrated every year on her birthday. She enrolled herself as a student at the Lutheran Hospital of Pastor Fliedner in Kaiserwerth, Germany. She died peacefully at the age of 90 in South Street Park, London in August 1910. She then worked hard to educate herself in the art and science of nursing. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Florence_Nightingale_by_Goodman,_1858.jpg, https://www.thehistorypress.co.uk/articles/eight-little-known-facts-about-florence-nightingale/, http://the8percent.com/florence-nightingale-ministering-angel/, https://nursezchoice.com/florence-nightingales-way/, https://www.sjogrenscambs.co.uk/in-the-footsteps-of-florence-nightingale/, http://www.cnmr.org.uk/FlorenceNightingale. She had one sister. Nightingale also served as an authority on public sanitation issues in India for both the military and civilians, although she had never been to India herself. Stephen Hawking was a scientist known for his work with black holes and relativity, and the author of popular science books like 'A Brief History of Time. If you see something that doesn't look right, contact us! Fiercely determined and dedicated as ever to improving health care and alleviating patients’ suffering, Nightingale continued her work from her bed. Although they had been warned of the horrid conditions there, nothing could have prepared Nightingale and her nurses for what they saw when they arrived at Scutari, the British base hospital in Constantinople. The most basic supplies, such as bandages and soap, grew increasingly scarce as the number of ill and wounded steadily increased. Florence Nightingale was a British social reformer who founded modern nursing. She explained her reason for turning him down, saying that while he stimulated her intellectually and romantically, her "moral…active nature" called for something beyond a domestic life. She procured hundreds of scrub brushes and asked the least infirm patients to scrub the inside of the hospital from floor to ceiling. Her writings sparked worldwide health care reform, and in 1860 she established St. Thomas' Hospital and the Nightingale Training School for Nurses. Her father, William Shore Nightingale, was a wealthy landowner who had inherited estates in England. The house sits in … ', Florence Nightingale was a trailblazing figure in nursing who greatly affected 19th- and 20th-century policies around proper medical care. Information Source: biography.com Many hospitals and museums have been named after her and a number of statues have been erected in her memory. Florence Nightingale was a Victorian-era English woman who greatly improved the care of sick and dying soldiers during the Crimean war. This riveting biography explores the exceptional life of a woman who defied the stifling conventions of Victorian society to pursue what was considered an undesirable vocation. To this day, Nightingale is broadly acknowledged and revered as the pioneer of modern nursing. She was known for her night rounds to aid the wounded, establishing her image as the 'Lady with the Lamp.'. She wrote many books and letters to improvise the treatments and care given to wounded soldiers. In 1907, she was conferred the Order of Merit by King Edward, and received the Freedom of the City of London the following year, becoming the first woman to receive the honor. Nightingale also volunteered at the Middlesex Hospital around this time, grappling with a cholera outbreak and unsanitary conditions conducive to the rapid spread of the disease. By the time she was 38 years old, she was homebound and routinely bedridden, and would be so for the remainder of her life. Seldom did anyone really know her. Florence Nightingale was born on May 12, 1820 at some stage of a family holiday made by her English parents in Florence, Italy, which is she was named after (Funnell, Koutoukidis & Laurence, 2005: 5). Her mother, Frances Nightingale, hailed from a family of merchants and took pride in socializing with people of prominent standing. When she returned home she started visiting hospitals in London, Edinburgh and Dublin. In late 1854, Nightingale received a letter from Secretary of War Sidney Herbert, asking her to organize a corps of nurses to tend to the sick and fallen soldiers in the Crimea. In the evenings she moved through the dark hallways carrying a lamp while making her rounds, ministering to patient after patient. Florence Nightingale moved to the East Midlands as a baby and spent the majority of her young life at Lea Hurst in Derbyshire. Rodents and bugs scurried past them. After the Battle of Alma, England was in an uproar about the neglect of their ill and injured soldiers, who not only lacked sufficient medical attention due to hospitals being horribly understaffed but also languished in appallingly unsanitary conditions. She published two books to spread her ideas and opinions on reforms, namely ‘Notes on Hospital’ (1859) and ‘Notes on Nursing’ (1859). In August 1910, Nightingale fell ill but seemed to recover and was reportedly in good spirits. Her parents were on an extended honeymoon when she was born and returned to England the following year, spending time between their two residences in Derbyshire and Hampshire.Her father was keen for Florence to have a classical education and she … During the Victorian Era, where English women had almost no property rights, a young lady of Nightingale's social stature was expected to marry a man of means to ensure her class standing—not take up a job that was viewed by the upper social classes as lowly menial labor. She was born in Italy to William Edward Nightingale and Frances “Fanny” Nightingale. She laid the foundation for pursuing nursing as a profession by elite British women and others as well. After much opposition, Florence announced her decision to enter the field in 1844. She believed without doubt that this was her divine calling. Thanks to Nightingale, nursing was no longer frowned upon by the upper classes; it had, in fact, come to be viewed as an honorable vocation. Florence wanted to become a nurse, but at that time nursing was not the sort of job people like Florence did. More soldiers were dying from infectious diseases like typhoid and cholera than from injuries incurred in battle. She could not be the superintendent because of her ‘Crimean fever’ but she closely watched the progress of the institution. Alexander Fleming was a doctor and bacteriologist who discovered penicillin, receiving the Nobel Prize in 1945. She was named after the town where she was born. Florence Nightingale Biography. In 1855, the Nightingale fund was set up to open up a training school for nurses. However, what is less well known about this amazing woman is her love of mathematics, especially statistics, and how this love played an important part in her life's work. Introduction . A week later, on the evening of Friday, August 12, 1910, she developed an array of troubling symptoms. Part of a wealthy family, Florence Nightingale defied the expectations of the time and pursued what she saw as her God-given calling of nursing. Nightingale became a figure of public admiration. Pursuing a career in nursing was looked down upon by the society at that time, especially for someone with an affluent background. Her parents named her after the city she was born in. In the Victorian age the society was cruel towards women taking up this vocation. Based on her observations during the Crimea War, Nightingale wrote Notes on Matters Affecting the Health, Efficiency and Hospital Administration of the British Army, a massive report published in 1858 analyzing her experience and proposing reforms for other military hospitals. Category : Biography & Autobiography Languages : en Pages : 58 View: 4297. as well as a classroom and library for intellectual stimulation and entertainment. She was the daughter of a wealthy British couple who were enjoying an extended stay in Italy on their Grand Tour of classical Europe – a popular activity with the upper classes of that era. She fought till the very end for better health care and proper sanitation facilities after losing more men in the Crimean war due to infections than battle-wounds. Early Life and Education Florence was raised on the family estate at Lea Hurst, England. Florence Nightingale Florence Nightingale was born in Florence, Italy. Nightingale received a letter from Secretary of War, Sidney Herbett - both eventually became very good friends - requesting assistance from her nurses to tend to the soldiers. Patients lay in their own excrement on stretchers strewn throughout the hallways. She still holds the world records in the 100- and 200-meter events. The medicine supply was little and the death rate was on an all time high. 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