HOW FLORENCE NIGHTINGALE EMPLOYED STATISTICS As the use of new advanced techniques of statistical analysis began to unfold in the 19th century via the statisticians, it was still uncommon to think of nurses collecting and analyzing data. Yet, Nightingale did just that. Nightingale recognized that reliable data on the in strong preventable deaths in the military madearguments for change. Most notably, she pioneered the revolutionary notion that social phenomena could be objectively measured and subjected to mathematical analysis 25 Nightingale employed statistics in her efforts to reform the British military healthcare system through the founding of training programs and definition of sound professional standards.