International Nurses Day (IND) is celebrated every year all around the world on 12th of May to recall and show respect for the birth anniversary of the Florence Nightingale and to remind the nurse’s contributions towards people’s health.
International nurses day history
The idea to celebrate Nurses Day was first proposed by the Dorothy Sutherland (an officer from the U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare) in the year 1953 and first proclaimed by the President Dwight D. Eisenhower. And it was first celebrated by the International Council of Nurses (ICN) in the year 1965.In the month of January in 1974, the 12th of May was declared to be celebrated as the birthday anniversary of the founder of modern nursing, the Florence Nightingale.
The ICN has announced the theme for the 2018 International Nurses Day.
Nurses –A voice to lead- Health is a human right.
Health should be considered as one of the human rights to take care of and nurses are the key to delivering it. All over the world, there are many people and communities who are suffering from illness due to a lack of accessible and affordable health care. But we must also remember that the right to health applies to nurses as well. We know that improved quality and safety for patients depends on positive working environments for staff. That means the right to a safe working environment, adequate remuneration, and access to resources, and education. There is no other profession that attends to people’s needs in their most vulnerable periods of time as nursing does. The relationship between the client and the nurse provides a unique and intimate view of a person’s life. But no one is raising their hands and voice for the nurses. This time we must add to this the right to be heard and have a voice in decision making and policy development implementation.
This International Nurses Day, let us join together to share how nurses are transforming health care and health systems so that no person is left behind. Let us join our voices together to be a voice to lead by supporting a people–centred approach to care and health systems, and ensuring our voices are heard in influencing health policy, planning and provision.
Why nurses should raise their voice for a human right to health?
From time immemorial, nurses have undertaken a holistic view of the individual and their personhood within the community. Nurses can lead by supporting a people–centred approach to care and the health system. This places the wellbeing of individuals, communities and populations at the centre of the health system. The health system cannot be technocratic or removed from the people it is meant to serve.
When laws have been created to support the right to the highest attainable standard of health, many organisations, institutions and governments are exploring what this means and how to put it into practice. The right to health is not static but continues to evolve as progress in the fields of science and technologies are made. Nurses need to be making the decisive contribution to this process as they possess the scientific reasoning, philosophical underpinnings and proximity to the patient, family and community.
The success of Universal Health Coverage through people–centred care is dependent on the nursing profession providing a transformational approach to the way health is conceptualised and how health care is delivered. This includes forming and fostering partnerships with individuals and communities, policy makers, governments, and other health professionals to modify the effects of the social determinants of health; to conceptualise health care providers as inclusive of the community; and to develop and scale up innovative models of health service delivery. A people–centred approach, a functional health system, the availability of an appropriately skilled workforce and addressing the issues of access are the critical building blocks for Universal Health Coverage.
As the global voice of nursing, nursing communities will continue to speak up and speak out for the rights especially for Health. In 2018, MWT Global Academy is doing this louder and stronger than ever before for nurses. On behalf of us all at MWT Global Academy, Happy International Nurses Day!
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