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At the time, public health in Industrial Britain was underfunded and neglected by the government. So, just how did she single-handedly push for the reformation of the hospital healthcare system? Let's find out!
History of Florence Nightingale
In this era of public health in Britain, nursing was regarded as an extremely lowly, crass, and uneducated profession. In addition, the profession had come to be closely associated with alcoholism and drunkenness. This sentiment was echoed in various famous pieces of literature of the time.
Fig. 1 - A relief of Florence Nightingale in London
Against all odds, Florence defied societal barriers and norms of a respectable woman and sought to improve public health and restructure society's opinion on nursing.
Did you know? Such depictions of the profession at a time when reading and novels were a regular fixture of wealth in English life had an extremely important role in shaping the views of English society.
Florence Nightingale Timeline
Florence Nightingale carved out a unique and trailblazing path for a woman of her stature, but her boldness pushed her to continue her mission further.
| Date | Event |
| 12 May 1820 | Florence Nightingale was born. |
| 1837 | Florence Nightingale campaigned for better care in hospitals. |
| July 1850 | Florence completed two weeks of training at the Institution of Protestant Deaconesses at Kaiserswerth in Germany. |
| July 1851 | Florence enrolled at the Institution of Protestant Deaconesses for three months of training. |
| 1853 | Florence Nightingale was made superintendent at a medical centre for women in London. |
| 1854 | Nightingale travelled to care for wounded soldiers serving in the Crimean War. |
| 1856 | Nightingale returned home to England and was recognised as a hero. |
| 1860 | Florence Nightingale opened The Nightingale Training School. |
| 1861 | Nightingale opened a midwifery hospital at King's College Hospital. |
| 1883 | Florence Nightingale was awarded the Royal Red Cross. |
| 13 August 1910 | Florence Nightingale died. |
Fun fact! After Florence had acquired her formal training, she decided to take an unpaid role as a ‘Superintendent’ at the ‘Establishment for Gentle Women During Illness', now known as London's King's College Hospital.
About Florence Nightingale
Nightingale was brought up at Lea Hurst, Derbyshire, on her family's estate. She was educated in classical education by her father, setting her up to have an interest in philanthropy from a young age. Florence often cared for the poor and ill in her neighbouring village, foreshadowing her influential future.
Florence Nightingale Facts
Florence Nightingale was born in 1820 in Florence, Italy, into an extremely wealthy family. This wealthy and privileged background enabled Florence Nightingale to receive an extensive education. This type of education for a woman at this time was extremely progressive and largely unheard of, even for a woman of an upper-class social standing like Nightingale.
Florence Nightingale was also deeply religious. This religious passion led her to believe that she was anointed for a special purpose. In addition to her religious sacrament, she was said to have had a very outspoken, passionate, and bold personality.
Fig. 2 - Florence Nightingale
This outspoken boldness was clear when she defied societal norms and her family's wishes to pursue a career in nursing.
Did you know? Florence Nightingale had what she understood as a religious vision at age 17. Florence Nightingale believed that this vision had instructed her to help mankind.
Crimean War
In 1854, Britain went to war with Russia. This was known as the Crimean War (1854-1856). This provided a perfect opportunity for Florence Nightingale to put her formal training to use. Florence made a great impact during the War, reducing the mortality rate from 42% to 2%!
Did you know? Sidney Herbert, the Secretary for War, requested that Florence Nightingale travelled to the front line with 38 nurses to work in the military hospital in Scutari!
Famous Work of Florence Nightingale
During the Crimean War, the British barracks (British military base) were named the Scutari Barracks. Thus, their military hospital was named after the barracks, The Scutari Hospital. The conditions of the Scutari hospital had been the subject of much bad press, most significantly reported on by the Times newspaper. Let's take a look at how Florence Nightingale improved the Scutari Hospital.
When Nightingale arrived at the hospital in Scutari, Turkey, in November 1854, she was affronted with appalling conditions.
The hospital housed around 10,000 patients in overcrowded and cramped conditions. This meant that patients were lying on the floor and placed in corridors.
Disease and infection were rife. This was to the degree that the majority of deaths in the Crimean War were disease-related rather than combat-related.
Medical supplies were extremely limited as they were hard to deliver. Basic supplies such as bandages and medicine were simply unavailable.
In addition, there was a lack of food for the same reasons.
Many patients suffered from typhoid, cholera, and diarrhoea.
Patients were afflicted with lice and flea infestations. The hospital was also infested with rats and mice.
The general condition of the hospital infrastructure was terrible. The roof had holes and leaked.
The hospitals were extremely dirty and unhygienic.
Fig. 3 - Hospital at Scutari
Florence Nightingale improved the hygiene of the hospital, scrubbing all the surfaces and the kitchen and then washing all the bedding, sheets, equipment, towels, and bandages.
Fun fact! Nightingale demanded a shipment of 300 scrubbing brushes to clean the dirt and ordered clean bedding.
The British government intervened in 1855 by improving the clean water supply, contributing to the drop in mortality during this time. This was significant because the hospital was built on a cesspit, a dump of human waste and excrement. This meant that all water was infested with human waste, which led to severe diseases, such as cholera, caused by a dirty water supply.
Philanthropist Baroness Angela Burdett-Courts had read the Times articles about the shocking conditions and felt impassioned to help. She donated a machine that could dry around 1,000 pieces of wet linen at the time. Much of the war effort at Scutari was made by donations, highlighting the government's laissez-faire attitude towards public health.
Laissez-faire
A political ideology that tends to leave circumstances to their own course of action without government interference.
English Hospitals and British Public Health
Florence Nightingale believed in the medical theory of miasma. During this time, not much was known medically about what caused disease and infection. Although there were theories, nothing was definitive. The miasma theory argued that disease was based on the idea that disease was carried through dangerous fumes in the air and unpleasant smells.
Fig. 4 - This image was used to represent the cholera epidemic in the nineteenth century
Did you know? The theory of miasma was also supported by the fact that disease was worse in the summer or in hotter conditions. This logic checked out as bad smells generally worsened in the summer.
Although this theory was not entirely correct, it had some very important merits that helped to advance medicine. The general focus on promoting hygiene and air circulation enabled Florence Nightingale to improve the conditions in English hospitals. Nightingale's main changes following these theories were that she:
- Prioritised the importance of a good diet and hydration.
- Pushed for the increase of airflow and clean air circulation.
- Aimed to change the role and importance of nurses.
The Nightingale Fund was created during the Crimean War and raised around £44,000. With the help of public donations from the fund, Florence Nightingale opened the Nightingale Home and Training School for Nurses based at St Thomas’s hospital in London in July 1860.
It was with this hospital she began to transform nursing. Florence Nightingale started with two important rules:
- Nurses received practical training in hospitals that were organised for a specific purpose.
- Nurses were to live in elevated social conditions.
The Importance of Florence Nightingale
At the beginning of the 19th century, hospitals could accommodate around 3,000 patients. 50 years later, this number grew exponentially to 8,000. Hospitals were not only larger but improved the training of their staff. Florence Nightingale was influential in the growth of British hospitals through her developments within nursing and care for the sick and poor from their homes and workhouses. Her education about the vital cleanliness of hospitals to avoid infection and the principles and priorities she established within nursing education aided the development of British hospital procedures.
Fig. 5 - The life of Florence Nightingale 1905 Illustration
Notes on Nursing (1860) by Florence Nightingale
This book mainly focused on promoting nursing, setting out how nurses should be trained, and suggesting ways to improve hospitals and public health in Britain. It was revolutionary and the first of its kind.
Florence Nightingale is remembered as a pioneer of nursing and a reformer of hospitals.1
- Bernard Cohen
Nightingale created a basic holistic care routine that is still applicable today. However, Nightingale wasn't the only influential figure that contributed to the emergence of medical science and improvements during the 19th century that is still used today! Here is an overview of other developments within the medical scientific community at this time.
- Joseph Lister made a microscope with 1,000 times magnification.
- Louis Pasteur discovered germs and revolutionised medical knowledge during this time.
- Robert Koch applied Pasteur's revolutions to human disease, forming the scientific branch of Bacteriology.
- Governments started to financially support scientific research: the Medical Officer of Health for Ebbw Vale, Dr J.W. Power, helped to set up courses in bacteriology at King’s College, London.
- Emil von Behring discovered anti-toxins.
- Emile Roux developed a vaccine for Diptheria.
- Paul Ehrlich created the treatment of syphilis, named Salvarsan 606.
Did you know? Florence Nightingale was known as the 'Lady with the Lamp'. This was nickname given because of her habit of personally conducting the final patient round at night, every night.
Florence Nightingale - Key takeaways
- Florence Nightingale broke through both class and gender boundaries and developed modern nursing. She changed how society regarded nursing as a profession, shifting the career path to be seen as an intellectual and respected form of education and training, as well as a primary care profession.
Florence Nightingale's impact and works led to 68,000 nurses being trained by 1900, which had significantly changed from zero in 1850 before Florence began her work.
Florence saved many lives during the Crimean War through sanitation, hygiene, diet, and hospital organisation. By Spring 1855, the mortality rate had dropped to 2% from the 42% it had been when Florence began her work in November 1854.
Florence Nightingale believed in the miasma theory as the cause of disease and illness.
Florence Nightingale established the first nursing (1860) and midwifery (1861) schools in England. She also oversaw the implementation of the French pavilion-style hospital in England, where patients were organised by disease and not mixed.
Florence Nightingale published over 200 works, the most notable of all being Notes on Nursing (1860). She also received the Royal Red Cross Award in 1883 and was the first woman to be awarded the Order of Merit for exceptional service to the crown in 1907.
References
- Bernard Cohen, (1984). Florence Nightingale, pp 128.
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Frequently Asked Questions about Florence Nightingale
Who is Florence Nightingale?
Florence Nightingale was a social reformer, often considered the founder of modern nursing. She is often known as the 'Lady with the Lamp' due to her tendency to do the last patient checks at night herself, with a small lantern at hand.
What is Florence Nightingale best known for?
Florence Nightingale is best known for making hospitals a safer and cleaner location. She is also best known for her work where she educated the people about her hygiene standards and method of care, influencing the future of public health and the growth of hospitals.
Why did Florence Nightingale spent 11 years in bed?
Florence Nightingale contracted Crimean fever, and at the age of 38 she was bedridden until her death, and therefore was forced to spend many years in bed.
Why was Florence Nightingale important?
Florence Nightingale was important as she changed public health care on the frontline and developed the system and status of the field of nursing.
What disease did Florence Nightingale cure?
Although Florence Nightingale did not cure one specific disease, she implemented a system of sanitary conditions during the Crimean War, saving many lives from typhus, typhoid and cholera.
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