The mother of modern nursing, but not the first nurse. Rome had male nurses.While I agree, following Maslow's Hiearchy of Needs, it's also part of a civilized culture. In the wild, personal survival comes first except for family.
It was only a little over a hundred years ago that the retirement plan of people was to have children. Who else would care for them in their old age?
Isn't Florence Nightingale credited as being the first nurse?