Celebrating Nurses on International Nurses Day May 12th
After the year we have had, a week to celebrate nurses doesn’t seem to be even close to enough time to recognize their incredible service to the health of all of us. Throughout the pandemic, we have seen videos and stories and testimonials to the impact of nurses during this difficult time. But we have always known that about nurses, haven’t we?
In 2020, the World Health Organization declared that year as the International Year of the Nurse and Midwife – in honor of the incredible work nurses do throughout the world and to honor the 200th anniversary of Florence Nightingale. Due to the pandemic, WHO has extended the International Year of the Nurse and Midwife into 2021 to recognize the valuable contributions that nurses have made during this crisis.
The pandemic has put a huge strain on our healthcare professionals and on our health systems. Healthcare will undoubtedly be forever changed by what we’ve been through this past year. Nurses, as the largest group of healthcare providers, are leaders in this change.
The theme for this year’s International Nurses Day on May 12th is Nurses: A Voice to Lead – A Vision for Future Healthcare. This theme explores ‘the challenges nursing faces and how the profession will transform the next stage of healthcare’ (ICN, 2021). Our UNM College of Nursing has always worked to transform the field through developing leaders. We know how much they have contributed to educating future nurses to assist and care for their communities. Throughout this pandemic we have only seen that dedication grow by expanding their already robust online curriculum, finding creative solutions to simulation education, vaccinating New Mexicans, serving on the front lines of patient care of COVID patients and a host of other endeavors.
We hope that all nurses understand how much they’re appreciated and valued. We take this moment to offer thanks for all you do and celebrate you this month, this year and always.