Florence Nightingale: yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

Nurses today continue to incorporate in their practice the insight and foresight of Florence Nightingale, although her clinical acumen and the historical tie are seldom recognized or documented. Qualitative research data that describe good nursing practice from the perspectives of nurses and physicians reflect the relevance and timeliness of Nightingale's century-old yet visionary works to the practice of nursing as it exists in contemporary hospitals. In both eras, the patient is the focal point of nursing care, as nurses concern themselves with disease prevention, health promotion, the physical environment, and psychosocial processes.