FLORENCE NIGHTINGALE'S NOTES ON NURSING AND NOTES ON NURSING FOR THE LABOURING CLASSES, COMMEMORATIVE EDITION WITH HISTORICAL COMMENTARY

FLORENCE NIGHTINGALE'S NOTES ON NURSING AND NOTES ON NURSING FOR THE LABOURING CLASSES, COMMEMORATIVE EDITION WITH HISTORICAL COMMENTARY Victor Skretkowicz, Editor New York: Springer Publishing Company 2010, 480 pp., $42.00

This publication is a journey into the life and work of Florence Nightingale. Edited by Victor Skretkowicz, this commemorative edition represents a historical and philosophical glimpse into the life of a pioneer of holistic health care. Skretkowicz frames three versions of her publications. The inclusion of manuscript additions not published as part of her original text, along with Nightingale's personal correspondence and historical anecdotes, afford the reader a detailed understanding of Nightingale's mission to improve the quality of human life through disease prevention and wellness. Her efforts toward sharing her nursing theory universally so as to promote healing and health across socioeconomic divides are fully captured by Skretkowicz.

There are two facets unique to this commemorative edition, the compilation of Nightingale's writings and the editorial arrangement. For over a century, Nightingale's manuscripts have stood alone. Skretkowicz, however, adds value to her works through his artful sequencing and interpretation.

Part One, Introduction

The Introduction provides a historical chronology of Nightingale's trials and tribulations during the publication of her work, including excerpts from her personal correspondence. The editor does a fine job assisting the reader to appreciate Nightingale's ability to overcome the gender disparities of her era to promote a global philosophy of health and wellness that reached across the socioeconomic boundaries of the Victorian period.

In addition to the influences of her affluent upbringing, Nightingale surrounded herself with intellects. She used her wealth and affiliations with renowned physicians and intellectual contemporaries to foster her understanding of diseases and the impacts of sanitation, light, air, cleanliness, ventilation, variation, nourishment, and warmth toward achieving optimal wellbeing. She believed that the role of the nurse, whether by formal title or unofficial responsibility, was to prevent harm and promote wellness through observation, assessment, and intervention of these variables on humans.

Through relationships with Dr. John Sutherland, Dr. William Aitken,...