International Nurses Day is celebrated around the world on May 12, the anniversary of Florence Nightingale’s birth.

International Nurses Day is an opportunity to celebrate nursing and the contribution nurses make, improving the lives of individuals and their families, the health and wellbeing of whole communities and the wider population.

The International Council of Nurses (ICN) theme for 2016 is: Nurses: a force for change.

Purpose of the day

The purpose of this day is to:

    • Enhance the image of nursing and nurses locally and nationally
    • Represent the diversity of nursing roles and their contribution to health and wellbeing
    • Promote nursing as an attractive, rewarding and modern career
    • Set right any misconceptions about nurses and the nursing profession
    • Visit schools and offer careers insights, showing how worthwhile and fulfilling a nursing career can be.

Acknowledgement

Nurses around the world are working hard to obtain the millennium goals of reducing child mortality, improving maternal health and combating HIV/Aids, malaria and communicable and non-communicable diseases. Despite daily pressures and challenges, most nurses continue to prioritise the welfare of their patients.

Our country needs and celebrates our nurses who are dedicated to the task they chose for themselves. We know that healthcare cannot function without them, let alone strive for excellence in the objective of serving all the people of South Africa.

“Nurses dispense comfort, compassion, and caring without even a prescription”, said Val Saintsbury. For this we honour and thank you!

 

Sources

 

http://cno.dh.gov.uk
http://nursing.nhscareers.nhs.uk
http://www.icn.ch
http://www.quotegarden.com
http://www.sanc.co.za

 

(Revised by M van Deventer)