Florence Nightingale was a true pioneer for the nursing world. There is a lot of wonderful and informative nursing history to be learned, and it all serves as a good building block for others who are in the field of nursing today. Nightingale’s book, “Notes on Nursing” is an integral part of nursing history, and is still a guide for many people who want to become a nurse today. In the 1800s, nursing did not just consist of treating patients. The nurses were also responsible for cleaning and sweeping the hospital rooms and hallway, as well as making sure the ward had a comfortable temperature. This was often done by adding coal to the furnaces or opening all of the windows. An interesting part of nursing history that many people don’t know is that nurses were required to put away part of their pay each week in order to provide a sort of nest egg for themselves when they got older and needed their own medical care.

Integrity was and still is a very important part of nursing history. Ethics and how a nurse carried him or herself was considered to be an integral part of her job status. For nurses who drank alcohol or smoked, the head nurse was often given cause to suspect her of being less than fit for the job. Originally nurses were there to serve as a comfort to patients. Today, they are so much more and can often help to diagnose illnesses, and administer treatment. They are also a wonderful connection for the patient between themselves and their doctor. Courage was a very important part of nursing history, and nurses provided a sense of security to their patients, and they still do the same today. Thanks to a rich and storied history of nursing and the nursing industry, today’s nurses are stronger, better equipped, and more educated than ever before.