ABSTRACT
Objective:
To reflect on the contribution of Florence Nightingale in the health and nursing areas based on her epistemological legacy.
Method:
Reflection in which Florence Nightingale’s nursing theoretical model is approached, trying to show how her family, training, social and cultural concepts influenced the formal construction of care.
Results:
Florence Nightingale’s vocation, profession and legacy stand out as faithful expressions of her thoughts for the professional constitution of the nurse. Responsible for the care of people with a strong humanitarian characteristic.
Conclusions:
It is not possible to unravel nursing care today from Nightingale’s thinking. This represents the power of a lifetime dedicated to the profession.
Keywords:
History of nursing; Nursing theory; Biography; Nursing; Professional role