Florence Nightengale's Notes on Nursing...

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Who has read Florence Nightengale's Notes on Nursing? WOW! What an awesome read for any nurse, no matter what specialty. Just wanted to know thoughts from those who have read the book. I was a bit surprised to learn that she was thought to have been bipolar, but maybe it was just the misunderstood personality of a nurse?!?!

I love Florence Nightengale!! We even share a birthday!! May 12th, Nurse's Day.

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Its a great and easy read. I really enjoyed her basic wisdom..... Consider this quote:

"I use the word nursing for want of a better. It has been limited to signify little more than the administration of medicines and the application of poultices. It ought to signify the proper use of fresh air, light, warmth, cleanliness, quiet, and the proper selection and administration of diet-all at the least expense of vital power to the patient."

Or this one:

Every nurse ought to be careful to wash her hands very frequently during the day. If her face too, so much the better.

While we have certainly come a long way from the conditions of hospitals in the 19th century, we haven't achieved the level of care that is possible with a little more attention and concern....

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Florence was a powerful activist. Nursing was only one of the areas she revolutionized. Hospital design, medical statistics, public health and military health owe a lot to her.

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My daughter bought me this book for Christmas, I love it. It's really interesting. Yeh, I was surprised about the Bi-polar dx too. But what I really found interesting was that all of the research that we have going on now was part of her thinking back then. Like hand washing, infection control and healing includes, touch, quiet, rest and clean air. Makes me think we get too caught up in too much nonsense and need to go back to the basics.

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I'm reading this book right now! I'm a pre-nursing student and I've found it to be really beneficial to know some of the history/foundations of the nursing profession.

I agree that the language is sometimes hard to understand, but I her overall message still comes through.

Take care!:redbeathe

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Specializes in IM/Critical Care/Cardiology.
I understand that she had psychological issues stemming from her experiences during the Crimean war. I do not think that her experiences during this time are well understood by most; however, she saw and experienced a human disaster of death, disease, and filth. I imagine those experiences left permanent marks on her and her fellow nurses.

Totally agree GilaRN,

Not only what she saw in that war, but what she had to do to impliment better nursing practices, (boiling bandages for example). She was quite the nurse.

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does anyone know if there's a book i can buy? i would love to read it

I bought mine new from Amazon, but I'm sure if you checked Half.com or eBay you could fine one in good condition.

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