An Analysis of Past Florence Nightingale Medal Recipients: Insights Into Exceptional Nurses and the Evolution of Nursing

AIM: To examine past Florence Nightingale Medal recipients’ parallels with the evolving nature of the nursing field as a whole. DESIGN: Descriptive research. METHOD: The professional and demographic characteristics of 1,449 Florence Nightingale Medal recipients between 1920 and 2015 were analyzed to develop a high-level overview of the award recipient characteristics. RESULT: Medal recipients were primarily female (98.07%), with 36% being Specialist nurses. Awards were mainly conferred for aid work (30.4%) in the context of war or armed conflict followed by Nursing education (17.2%) and disaster aid (14.9%). The majority of recipients were affiliated with the Red Cross and the majority of recipients were those conducting Red Cross duties. CONCLUSION: Our results offer statistical validation for the dedication of these exceptional individuals, while also highlighting overall parallels with the ongoing development of the nursing field as it expands to better deliver culturally-sensitive care and to overcome outdated stereotypes that would otherwise constrain innovation.