Notes on Nursing: What It Is, and What It Is Not

Most people are familiar with the name of Florence Nightingale and the image of 'the lady with the lamp'. Initially celebrated for her efforts during the Crimean War, Nightingale is best known as a reformer of army medical services and of nursing more generally. She wrote Notes on Nursing - first published in 1859, but reprinted here in its revised and enlarged 1860 edition - in order to share her knowledge with women who were nursing their families at home. It was also required reading at the nursing school she opened at St Thomas' Hospital, the first of its kind, and at other such establishments. Still hailed today as important introductory reading for aspiring nurses, the text explains the centrality of ventilation, observation, hygiene, and diet during sickness, as well as care during convalescence. It also contains timeless instructions on how to nurture both the mind and body of the sick.