Florence Nightingale importance of her later work in professionalising nursing roles for women. In 1860, Nightingale laid the foundation of professional nursing with the establishment of her nursing school at St Thomas' Hospital in London. It was the first secular nursing school in the world, and is now part of King's College London. In recognition of her pioneering work in nursing, the Nightingale Pledge taken by new nurses, and the Florence Nightingale Medal, the highest international distinction a nurse can achieve, were named in her honour, and the annual International Nurses Day is celebrated around the world on her birthday. Her social
King's College London the discovery of the structure of DNA. Today it is home to: The adjacent James Clerk Maxwell Building houses the Florence Nightingale School of Nursing & Midwifery, much of the central professional services functions of the College and the President & Principal's Office. The Building was named after Scottish mathematical physicist James Clerk Maxwell, who was the Professor of Natural Philosophy at King's from 1860 to 1865. The nearest Underground station is Waterloo. The St Thomas' Campus in the London Borough of Lambeth, facing the Houses of Parliament across the Thames, houses parts of the School of Medicine and the