Famous Nurses

Forever improving the landscape of a relatively new profession, these impassioned and prolific Nurses established ever higher standards for the wellbeing of the sick, injured, and disabled. Every nurse should strive to accomplish as much in the advancement of the care and condition of the people who need it the most.

Florence Nightingale (1820-1910) - This British pioneer in the field (who was also a mathematician) insisted on more sanitary conditions for nurses and doctors during the Crimean War, which cut the death rate of wounded soldiers by a staggering amount. Florence Nightingale was a true nursing legend whose work changed the field of medicine dramatically for the better. She was also a tireless advocate for the advancement of women nurses and physicians.

Mary Todd Lincoln - Better known as Abraham Lincoln's wife, Mary Todd Lincoln proved her critics wrong (as a Southerner, her loyalty to the Unionist cause was suspected) by putting in almost impossible hours frequenting hospitals, cleaning wounds and consoling and feeding those soldiers suffering unbearable pain.

Walt Whitman (1819-1892) - Whitman is one of the most celebrated American poets of all time, penning such classics as "Leaves of Grass." But did you know that he served as a volunteer nurse in Washington, D.C. during the Civil War? He used the experience to write a collection of poems, Drumtaps.

Mary Ezra Mahoney (1845-1926) - The first African-American registered nurse, Mahoney graduated from the New England Hospital for Women and Children Training School for Nurses in 1879, and went on to have an illustrious and outstanding career as a nurse.

Mary Breckinridge (1881-1965) - In 1925, Mary Breckinridge introduced a groundbreaking, modern rural health car system in the United States. Called the Frontier Nursing Service (FNS), Breckinridges' model provided professional medical services to an otherwise uncared for population in rural southeastern Kentucky. The FNS used a decentralized system of nurse-midwives, district nursing centers, and hospital facilities to, among other achievements, make sure that no patient was more than 6 miles away from a nurse-midwife in this 1000-square mile region.

Edith Cavell - An English nurse, Cavell was the head of a nursing school and Red Cross hospital during the German occupation of Belgium during World War I. After aiding the escape of over 200 allied soldiers from occupied territory, she was subsequently arrested and executed, an event which increased public sentiment against German aggression.

Florence Guinness Blake (1907-1983) - A distinguished pediatric nurse, Florence Guinness Blake is perhaps best known for her devotion to advanced education in pediatric nursing. Notably, Blake taught pediatric nursing at several universities, and established the graduate program in advanced nursing care of children at the University of Chicago in 1946.

Hazel W. Johnson-Brown - A retired former head of the United States Army Nurse Corps, Johnson-Brown was the first African-American woman to achieve the rank of brigadier general in the US Army. She was the 16th chief of the Army Nurse Corps, an organization to which she dedicated 26 years of her life. She also served as Director of the Walter Reed Army Institute of Nursing.

Elizabeth Grace Neill (1846–1926) - Journalist, Social Reformer and Nurse; Grace Neill was driven by the desire to create change. Her brilliant career established the first Nurses’ Registration Act in the world in 1901. Her life was devoted to social reform in the welfare of the poor and the suffrage of woman. Her work began the course to a more responsible society.
[Source: Encyclopedia of New Zealand]

Sophie Mannerheim (1863–1928) - Sophie was a nurse known as pioneer of modernizing the profession in Finland. She was trained in nursing at the Nightingale School at St. Thomas Hospital in London. Subsequently, she was appointed as head nurse of Helsinki Surgical Hospital and later elected President of the Finnish Nurses' Association, a position she held for 24 years. Baroness Sophie Mannerheim was founder of the Children's Hospital in Helsinki as well as the Mannerheim League for Children's Welfare.
[Wikipedia]

Virginia Avenel Henderson (1897–1996) - An American nurse, researcher, theorist, and author: Virginia Henderson graduated from the Army School of Nursing, Washington, D.C., in 1921. She is an expert in nursing theory and graduated from Teachers College, Columbia University, with a M.A. degree in nursing education. Henderson is famous for defining nursing as a responsibility to aid people, whether sick or not, and help them towards better health and recover under any circumstances. The International Council of Nurses honored her with the first Christianne Reimann Prize in June 1985.
[Wikipedia]

Many historically great individuals have done their duty to bring nursing into the forefront of civilization, but there are also modern day nurses who deserve our attention.

Jeanne Prentice (Active CNM, South Dakota) - Protecting the Mother's right to choose a licensed professional to supervise home births in South Dakota, Prentice is leading the initiative called “PUSH!" The aim is to allow Certified Nurse Midwives to attend home births. Currently, women in many states can only have unattended home births if they are able to find a licensed physician to come to their home. This isn't happening though. So, Prentice is leading the charge to ensure that home births become not only possible, but a safe and viable opstion. [Source: Black Hills Portal]

Joyce Slinsky (retired RN, New Jersey) - A registered nurse for 45 years, with 39 of those years in the ER (emergency room) of John F. Kennedy Medical Center in Edison, was presented with an official proclamation from the state Senate and Assembly in reverence to her career. On January 20, 2007 she was honored as a retiree and highly valued member in her community of Brick, New Jersey. [Source: Asbury Park Press]

You have a chance to make your mark in the field of nursing and healthcare. Embrace the career, get educated, and become one more shining example in the tradition of treasured and celebrated nurses. Take the first step toward making your dream of pursing a nursing career a reality today.

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