Florence Nightingale was born in Florence, Italy, on May 12, 1820. Her father, William E. Nightingale, was a wealthy landowner who had inherited an estate in Derbyshire, England.
Florence's early education was placed in the hands of governesses. Later, her Cambridge educated father took over the responsibility himself. Florence was tutored by her father in languages, mathematics, and history.
On February 7, 1837, Florence Nightingale heard, by her account, the voice of God telling her that she had a mission in life. It took her several years of searching to identify that mission, which was to become a nurse.
By 1844, defying parental objections, Florence Nightingale chose a different path than the social life and marriage expected of her. She went to Kaiserwerth hospital in Germany to study nursing. After her graduation, she returned to London and became superintendent of the London charity-supported Institution for Sick Gentlewomen in Distressed Circumstances. This opportunity allowed her to become independent from her family and also to try out new ideas in organizing and managing an institution, conducted in a scientific, nonreligious setting.
During the Crimean War, she was put in charge of nursing. Although being a female in a very male dominated world, she managed to reform the hospital system. Before her involvement, the sanitary conditions of the military hospital were horrible, with soldiers lying on bare floors infested with vermin. This meant that injured soldiers were 7 times more likely to die from disease in hospital, than on the battlefield. With her extensive knowledge in mathematics, Nightingale collected data and organised a record keeping system, this information was then used as a tool to improve city and military hospitals.
The time spent near the front during the Crimean War took a physical toll, and Nightingale's health declined in the late 1850s. By 1861 she rarely left her room, though she continued to write and issue statements and reports.
Despite her withdrawal from public life, her ideas about sanitation in British India gained currency. And her book Notes on Nursing greatly influenced the emerging nursing profession.
Florence Nightingale was a pioneer in making the nursing profession what it is today. She followed her mission, despite resistance from her family. She had the strength and determination to lead the life she had chosen to live. Not many women had the courage to do that in the 19th Century. And, even today, many people lack the courage to make choices that go against what their community expects of them.
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