The Lady with the Lamp at 200

It was 200 years ago today, on May 12, 1820, that Florence Nightingale was born, aptly enough, in Florence, Italy.

That was one of the first things I read as a child when I opened up A Picture Book of Florence Nightingale, a book I frequently checked out from the Maze Branch of the Oak Park Public Library. Perhaps my Mom's profession as a nurse made that particular biography book stand out among others, already having a sense of what nursing work is about.

It's incredible to think that Ms. Nightingale's parents were displeased with her desire to pursue nursing as her work, because there was an idea that it was low-down, dirty work.

We have hand Ms. Nightingale much credit for nursing's place as an important profession today.  She demonstrated the important nature of nursing through her work caring for people during the Crimean War, and even in England.  Eventually, her influence went all over the world as nurses she trained spread out.  Patients came to know her as the "Lady with the Lamp", as she made her rounds checking on them.

It was interesting to see her make an appearance in the Victoria show during season 3, in a short conversation with Queen Victoria in which Ms. Nightingale talked about her work.

Certainly, today, nurses have a crucial role in our society.  Even before the current pandemic situation, I was fully aware of that role.  I think what stands out so greatly about nurses is the strong component of compassion in their work, enhancing it beyond just physical care for their patients.  Maybe that's part of what inspired my Mom to do the work of nursing, for she once told me she wanted a job where she could make a difference.

And so there's much to celebrate as we mark the bicentennial of Florence Nightingale's birth, because for these past 200 years, the world has been made a better place by nurses who, like the SC Johnson commercial says, dare to care.

Ms. Nightingale certainly dared to care, and her mark is still upon the realm of modern nursing, including in the Nightingale Pledge that nurses recite upon entering their profession.  Mom tells me she recited it upon graduating from nursing school.

Nurses reciting the pledge promise to provide the best care in exercising their profession, living "in purity", as well as to uphold high ethical standards in handling personal and family matters that come to their attention, and assisting the doctor with "loyalty".

For the past 200 years, it is in the noble work of upholding such high standards that those who need medical care receive the benefits of the nursing profession and Florence Nightingale's legacy.