British nurse, promoter of modern nursing and pioneer of statistics in health. She was born on May 12, 1820 in Florence, the city to which she owes her name. She received a thorough education and was passionate about science, especially mathematics.
At the age of 17 he decided to devote himself to the care of the sick. In 1854 he was commissioned by the British government to care for the wounded in the Crimean War. He struggled tirelessly to improve the pitiful conditions of the patients, who were crammed into unsanitary barracks. He methodically recorded the deaths and the sanitary measures that were being applied.
In 1855 The Times highlighted her commendable work: "When silence and darkness descend upon so many prostrate mourners, she can be seen alone, with a small lamp in her hand, making her lonely rounds. She soon became known as "the lady with the lamp".
When the war was over, she analyzed the thousands of records and the results were frightening: most of the deaths were not due to war wounds, but to infections. To make the British government aware that this grim reality could be avoided with sanitary measures, he thought it would be more effective to use visual representations instead of the classic numerical tables.
Thanks to his mathematical knowledge, he devised a pie chart, called the Nightingale Rose Diagram, with which he schematically demonstrated the shocking figures of the Crimean disaster. This diagram was decisive for the government to urgently implement health reforms. In 1858 she was the first woman to be appointed a Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society.
In 1860 she founded the first nursing school at St. Thomas's Hospital in London. Her voice was recorded on a phonograph recording: When I am no longer even a memory, only a name, I trust that my voice will be able to perpetuate the great work of my life.
She died on August 13, 1910. Since then, the world has paid tribute to her with monuments, streets, stamps, banknotes and coins. In 1912 the International Committee of the Red Cross instituted the Florence Nightingale Medal, which it awards every two years to outstanding nurses. International Nurses Day is celebrated on the day of her birth.
Belen Yuste
Head of the Culture and Science Area. 12 de Octubre University Hospital
