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5. THE REFORMER

Original Acrylic on Canvas, 24”h x 24”w, Framed

 

“To understand God's thoughts we must study statistics, for these are the measure of His purpose.”

Florence Nightingale

 

       Florence came home from the Crimean War exhausted and very ill from the Crimean fever (Brucellosis persists for life) which was so prevalent in the Scutari hospital. After the exhausting trip back to London, then the train to the Whatstandwell Station, she walked and walked until at the end of the winding road and up the hill she came upon her own private nest, her beloved Lea Hurst. There, looking out the window from the music room, she was seen opening the wrought iron gate with its little ball pull, then walking step-by-step to the front door to be greeted by her family. Finally home, Florence rested for months, taking it all in; the work, the sacrifice, the deaths, the misery– and the salvation she was able to bring to the men in war by directing her nurses with compassion and giving them the leadership they needed to be professional nurses. Eventually back in London, she was now the great war heroine of Britain. New parents named their newborn after her, she was a national heroine, as popular as Queen Victoria – she was the people’s heroine. Her great friend and ally, as well as the Minister of War during the Crimean effort, Sidney Herbert, died, which affected her greatly and somewhat limited her access to the halls of government. Her statistical genius through the visual Coxcombs graph showed her peers and Queen what she was able to do while she was there. Once again she found herself once again in the room with Queen Victoria as well as Prince Albert. They wanted to know everything, especially the Queen.
       The British Army was soon to be revamped and nurses became part of the corps. The people of Britain wrote checks, sent money, all to ensure The Nightingale Fund was sustained and The Florence Nightingale School of Nursing at St. Thomas’ Hospital (later part of Kings College) opened, where she began to design new hospital wings and set forth administrative directives for the training of nurses, and made midwifery a profession as well as inspire what was soon to be known as the British Red Cross. When she visited the Queen, often painted and photographed wearing her beloved “little crown”, Florence shared her thoughts eye-to-eye, one-on-one. They were friends. The Queen showed her great respect and admiration of what Florence and her leadership provided to the Queen’s soldiers. Florence continued her work, this time quietly, behind the scenes, trying to change the world, always continuing to put nursing on the highest threshold, demanding acceptance of nurses by the physicians’ side. She consulted with the Union during the U.S. Civil War, specifically with Dorothea Dix. Elizabeth Blackwell, MD, the first woman physician in the United States, became a personal friend and they worked together on projects. She also consulted with the leadership of India to provide direction on sanitation issues. The Nightingales, as the nurses were come to be known as, had a distinctive look, white apron, stripped billowed-sleeve long dress.
       Her Notes on Nursing was printed and reprinted multiple times through the past century; her quotes became famous on multiple levels, as she wrote more than 14,000 letters during her lifetime. As she settled in one place then another, finally ending at 10 South Street in London, her beloved cats, were always nearby, especially her white Persian cat, Mr. Bismark. Medals were made, pins were pinned – she received the Red Cross, focusing on Faith, Hope and Charity in 1883; King Edward VII bestowed upon her the Order of Merit, the first woman to receive this honor; and her namesake nursing school fashioned a beautiful badge in her honor.

 

“Were there none who were discontented with what they have, the world would never reach anything better.”

                                                                                                                                     Florence Nightingale

 

• The war ended, and Flo came home, walking from the train station to her beloved Lea Hurst, up the hill, grasping the circular wrought iron ball pull on the gate between the pillars, then seen through the window by her family, then collapsing at the front door, and bedridden for months recuperating.

• The Nightingale Fund raised funds for the training of nurses as the result of her 38 and the Crimean War.

• The “little crown” of Queen Victoria.

 

• The famous Nightingale dress.

• She consulted with the Union forces during the U.S. Civil War.

• She consulted for decades with India to establish sanitary commissions to increase sanitary conditions.

• Her quotes are still used around the world.

• She was known to have dozens of cats during her lifetime, the most famous being Mr. Bismark, a white Persian.

• Many medals were bestowed upon her (Red Cross, Order of Merit, Nightingale Nursing School badge).