Notes on Nursing by Florence Nightingale

5b, 1859-60 Includes handwritten letter by Florence Nightingale  April 15th, 1861 with full length photo of Florence Nightingale. Printed in London

Description

Florence Nightingale (1820–1910) was a pioneering English nurse, social reformer, and statistician, widely recognized as the founder of modern nursing. She rose to prominence during the Crimean War (1853–1856), where her tireless work to improve sanitary conditions in military hospitals drastically reduced death rates and set new standards for patient care. Beyond her nursing, she championed public health reforms, hygiene, and the use of statistical analysis to influence government policy. Nightingale’s dedication to professionalizing nursing and improving healthcare systems left an enduring legacy that shaped the way hospitals and public health were organized across the world.

Published in 1859, Nightingale’s Notes on Nursing: What It Is and What It Is Not became the foundational manual for nursing practice and education. The book introduced revolutionary ideas for the time, emphasizing sanitation, ventilation, cleanliness, and proper nutrition as central to patient recovery. Nightingale stressed the importance of observing patients carefully, preventing infection through hygiene, and understanding the environment’s effect on health. She also emphasized the moral and psychological aspects of nursing, arguing that compassionate care and patient dignity were as essential as medical intervention. By combining practical guidance with scientific principles, Notes on Nursing transformed nursing from a domestic duty into a respected profession and provided a model that influenced nursing education worldwide.

Notes

Dark brown pebbled leather binding with gold title lettering on front cover, slight detaching on inside cover otherwise intact, some rubbing on four corners,  SIGNED with letter from Florence Nightingale.