Healing hands

– Maithreyi Chappidi

International Nurses Day is celebrated annually on May 12th. Why May 12th you ask? It was the birthday of Florence Nightingale, who is well known for her efforts in the Crimean war treating wounded soldiers and improving hospital sanitation. Indeed, she was the topic of many articles and poems. It was her achievements post-war that make her unforgettable and an influence on modern nursing. She founded a Nightingale Training School to help train more nurses as well as writing a book “Notes on Nursing,” which served as a guide for nursing schools in addition to her contributions to statistics and infographics.

The theme for this year’s International Nurses Day is “Voice ToLead: Health Is A Human Right,” by encouraging nurses to help patients and ensure the delivery of medical care to all as part of the Universal Healthcare and Sustainable Development Goals. With a focus, on increasing activity in healthcare policy and leadership. It aims to increase availability of healthcare to underserved individuals and communities, increasing availability of nursing professionals, providing support for continuing education, and inspiring nurses to be a part of policy decisions in and out of the hospital due to their vital role in the health is a human right approach.

India’s first four-year training course in nursing was founded in 1946 in Delhi and Christian Medical College Vellore. Since Independence, the number and scope of training courses has expanded to meet the needs of Indian healthcare. Let’s join today in celebrating and honoring the entire nursing profession and all the nurses in our lives and the incredible care and efforts they give to patients and family.