Death Centenary of Florence Nightingale Observed at Father Muller
Pics: Shashidhar Shetty
Daijiworld Media Network – Mangalore (RD/VA)
Mangalore, Aug 14: The nursing sciences department of Father Muller Medical College Hospital (FMMCH) conducted a seminar on “Infection control, reduction of mortality’ to mark the death anniversary of Florence Nightingale at the Conference Hall of the College here on Thursday August 12.
Professor Larissa M Sams, principal of Laxmi College of Nursing was the chief guest.
She called upon the nurses to be smart, skillful and update the knowledge in their field from time to time.
Father Muller Charitable Institutions director Fr Patrick Rodrigues lauded the services of nurses in hospitals. The brain storming sessions were dealt by various eminent speakers. FMMCH administrator Fr Richard Coelho was also present.
FMMC administrator Fr Denis D’Sa was the chief guest of the valedictory programme. He said that the nurses are the Angels of Mercy, who give comfort, care and compassion.
The staff nurses and teaching faculty of various hospitals and nursing colleges in city participated in the seminar. FMMCH nursing superintendent Aileen Mathias welcomed the gathering and highlighted the achievements of Florence Nightingale.
About Florence Nightingale
Florence Nightingale’s achievements as a nurse and activist in sanitation was a major turning point in the history of health care. Nurses were usually uneducated in medicine and did not have much experience in the field.
Earlier most hospitals were dirty with poorly planned buildings. Florence’s observation that cleanliness decreased the death rate influenced others to impose sanitation requirements. Florence Nightingale’s ideas had a major impact and it changed the way nurses were viewed and created higher sanitary standards for hospitals.
Florence’s involvement in the Crimean War 1854 was truly a turning point in the way Europe viewed nurses. In February 1855, the mortality rate at the hospital was 42.7 percent. When Nightingale’s sanitary reform was implemented, the mortality rate declined to just two percent.
The media was very interested in Nightingale’s work in the hospitals and during this time, Nightingale became a famous female nurse and the social status of all nurses improved. Nightingale cleaned up the hospitals, made a more pleasing atmosphere for the patients and cleaned the fresh water pipes. Nightingale’s two greatest life achievements – pioneering of nursing and the reform of hospitals – were remarkable.