Florence Nightingale's Contributions: an Integrative Review of the Literature

Objective: Florence Nightingale is a source of inspiration and a subject of research for researchers worldwide. This article is aimed at identifying the contributions of Florence Nightingale's achievements and written work in the articles published between 2004 and 2011, from the perception of their authors. Methods: It is an integrative review of the literature based on articles that contained the words Florence Nightingale in their titles and/or abstracts, undertaken in databases between 2004 and 2011, totaling 33 articles. The analysis was based on an electronic table showing the objective and summary of the main points expressed in the articles. Results: The results suggest that, as a public person, Nightingale's personal and professional life has been the subject of controversial comments. Conclusion: It is concluded that her achievements and written work have influenced several fields other than nursing, such as statistics, health administration, public health, physiotherapy and spirituality. 1 RN. Ph.D. in Nursing. Capes Scholarship. Member of the Research Group Cuidando e Confortando Graduate Program in Nursing (PEN) at Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC). Florianopolis SC Brazil [email protected] 2 RN. Ph.D. in Nursing. Retired Professor at the Nursing Department and at PEN/UFSC. Member of the Research Group C&C. Graduate Nursing Program (PEN) at the Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC). Florianopolis SC Brazil [email protected] REVISION