International Women's Day: Famous Female Nurses

Here at Homecare By Kare Plus Derby, we are celebrating International Women's Day by highlighting the achievements of famous females in nursing! These women have been pioneers in developing modern nursing and advancing the civil rights movements for women and BIPOC women in nursing. Read below to learn more about these amazing women. This year's theme for International Women's Day is #ChooseToChallenge as a challenged world is an alert world, and challenge brings change.

Florence Nightingale

Florence Nightingale, also known as the Lady with the Lamp was born on May 12th, 1820 and died on August 13th 1910. Not only was she a nurse for the British and allied soliders during the Crimean War, she was also a statistician, social reformer and was the foundational philosopher of what we know now as modern nursing. She was the first woman to be awarded the Order of the Merit and her impact on formalising nursing education has shown us the importance of having nurses in healthcare.

Mary Seacole

Mary Seacole was born on November 23rd, 1805 and died on May 14th, 1881. Mary was a Jamaican nurse who provided care and sustenance to British soldiers at the battlefront during the Crimean War. She faced double prejudice during her time, as she was a mixed raced woman but overcame this by always creating a space of kindness, care and determination in nursing, which has become her legacy.

Mary Eliza Mahoney

Mary Eliza Mahoney was born on May 7th, 1845 and died on January 4th 1926. Mary is known to be the first African American woman to study and professional work as a trained nurse in the United States.  Throughout her life, Mahoney has always been a strong supporter of women's suffrage and always has been an active member in advancing the movement of civil rights in the United States.

Elizabeth Grace Neill 

Grace Neill was born on May 26th, 1846 and died on August 18th, 1926. She was a nurse and social reformer in New Zealand, who led the movement of creating laws requiring nurses to be registered and trained in order to be able to practice nursing. This would allow protection for the public to ensure the highest quality of care was given to them by well-trained nurses and midwives.

These are only four examples of amazing women in the nursing industry but let us not forget that there are thousands of women each day working in healthcare saving lives, risking their own health during a pandemic. Let us all appreciate and celebrate these women not only today but everyday!