The other Angel of Crimea

[tatara]

i feel compelled to let all nurses know that florence nightingale wasn't the only angel of crimea.

if you are a nurse and you still haven't known mary seacole, please google it. she's equally admirable as florence nightingale.

i found this site to be helpful.

www.btinternet.com/~ardena/mary_seacole.htm

[leslie :-D]

thanks, tat.

indeed, ms. seacole is worthy of remembrance and honor.

while i was reading about her, it struck me that the haitian culture is rooted in the art of healing.

i have worked with so many haitian nurses and aides, and ALL of them offered remedies for a variety of ailments.

thanks for getting the word out, about the other angel.

leslie

[tatara]

This comment from a student nurse posted in another website struck me:

Florence nightingale was a terrible person.Mary Seacole was the person who really helped during the war.But Mary Seacole was not put down in history because she was black.Mary Seacole actually went into the war zones to bring out ill soldiers.SHE's the one that helped them.Florence Nightingale did not even help them but managaged to go down in history because of her white skin. Mary Seacole was given a medal for bravery and compassion from the king..Florence was given nothing as she did nothing.

[gonzo1, ASN, RN]

Thanks for sharing the information. I have read biographies of both and each were very special people (way ahead of their time)

They both made significant contributions to health care and improved the lives of many

As for the student, sounds like she has a lot of personal problems she needs to work on.

I hope she resolves some before she is responsible for direct patient care.

[leslie :-D]

i don't think that student has problems.

as a matter of fact, she's probably right.

most black folks DIDN'T get any credit whatsoever.

(actually i wanted to say "no" black folks got any credit.)

to me, it sounds like she has 'righteous' anger.

leslie

[elkpark]

I agree that Mary Seacole has failed to receive the recognition she should have and that is probably due at least in part to racism, but I agree that someone would have to have a pretty distorted view of history and nursing, or some unresolved personal issues, to feel the need to describe Flo as a "terrible person" and someone who "did nothing." Wow!

[XB9S, BSN, MSN, EdD, RN, APN]

tHere is also Betsi Cadwallader, a Welsh nurse she has recently been honoured by having a new NHS trust named after her.

[MedSurgeMess]

It sounds like Florence was the BSN/MSN and that Mary had the LPN or ADN if you want to put it in modern terms......both have their places in history, but I'll be honest, I love reading about Mary Seacole-I did a paper on her back in my ADN program. She was a very interesting woman, especially coming from a place as rich in history as she came from.....I recommend reading the other tabs too, there was some interesting information for anyone wanting to learn more about the history of women in medicine.

[RNperdiem, RN]

The two ladies had different scopes.

Mary Seacole took excellent care of a few patients. She was warm and skilled and gave good care. The men she took care of were most grateful.

Florence's scope was giving care to thousands.

We take for granted in a world of large companies and the institutional model. Florence was an organizational genius. Many hospitals built during her time were built to plans she had designed. Public health and medical statistics also owe a lot to her.

I respect them both.

[GilaRRT]

It sounds like Florence was the BSN/MSN and that Mary had the LPN or ADN if you want to put it in modern terms.

I disagree with your assessment. In fact, both were quite popular during their lives; however, Flo remained popular after death. It is interesting that many sources in fact state that Flo was somewhat of a "poor sport" or arguably "a bad person" in some sense. Flo actually wrote a letter where she accused Mary of running a brothel and being a person of rather poor character. This is in no way related to a RN/LPN debate. Mary was black and Flo was white, during the 1800's. Enough said.

While Flo did contribute greatly to nursing, I really do believe her contribution to be less significant that history makes out. Additionally, all of my reading seems to indicate Flo was rather egocentric and felt a sense of "social superiority" over other people such as Mary Seacole.

However, often is the case that many of histories great heroes were in fact not the nicest people. Isaac Newton, for example.

[tatara]

While Flo did contribute greatly to nursing, I really do believe her contribution to be less significant that history makes out. Additionally, all of my reading seems to indicate Flo was rather egocentric and felt a sense of "social superiority" over other people such as Mary Seacole.

However, often is the case that many of histories great heroes were in fact not the nicest people. Isaac Newton, for example.

There were gossips that FN died of complications of Syphilis and not of Brucellosis.

[GilaRRT]

There were gossips that FN died of complications of Syphilis and not of Brucellosis.

No real evidence from what I have read. In fact, much points to her lack of sexual relations. I would not base an opinion on pure gossip; however, her feelings and behavior toward Mary were well documented.