History of Nursing

Many people believe that the history of nursing began with Florence Nightingale and she is generally known as the founder of modern nursing. Florence Nightingale became famous when she was helping the British soldiers injured in the Crimean War. Although her parents were wealthy, she felt a calling from God to help others and entered the nursing profession. She led over thirty other female nurses to Constantinople in 1854 to help the injured British soldiers in hospitals there. While this might not seem important in the history of nursing, it was very unusual for female nurses to serve in combat hospitals. Through her love and care, she made many great changes in the hospitals and earned the love and appreciation of the soldiers.

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When she returned to London, she continued to fight for changes in hospital conditions, especially in hygiene. She published many books and brochures about her ideas, including patient care, and founded the Nightingale Training School for Nurses.

While the history of nursing begins with Florence Nightingale and her groundbreaking hospital changes, there are certainly many other important people in the history of nursing. Lillian Wald is known as the founder of visiting nursing, devoting her life to treating the poor that could not care for themselves. Anna Caroline Maxwell was a United States Army nurse who helped establish the Army Nurse Corps thus giving nurses in the Army an office rank. She was awarded the Medaille de l’Hygiene Publique by France during World War I for her work with public health. Another famous nurse from World War I was Lenah Higbee, who served as the United States Navy Nurse Corps superintendent. She joined the Navy Nurse Corps in 1908 as one of the original twenty nurses. For her leadership during this time, she became the first living woman to be awarded the Navy Cross. Clara Barton is a well known figure in the history of nursing. She was the founder of the American Red Cross, an organization that still steps in to help those in times of disasters and emergencies.