By: Antony Achayo
Nurses play vital role in health facilities around the world and that is every May 12th , we celebrate International Nurses Day (IND) This day is set to honor and note many contributions our nurses make in the society. It is clear that our nurses care for our loved ones at some of the most difficult times of their live. And in some points, they may only run short of time but not compassion.
During the times of Covid-19, most if not all of our nurses sacrificed their dear lives to care for the people who by bad luck got tested positive for Corona virus. Some of them willingly accepted to put aside their families only to take good care of the sick in the quarantine facilities. They would burn the midnight oil in ICUs trying to save lives and at some moments, they would ignore their young kids who needed their attention at those specific times only to remain standby in sustaining some people’s lives in HDUs.
Sadly, we lost a great number of nurses while in line of duty after they contracted the deadly virus from their patients. May their souls rest in peace. For sure, they will remain to be heroes of this nation and today 12th May 2022, we have got no option but to celebrate and congratulate them in absentia for their dying love for this country and its people.
If wishes were horses then nurses were to be celebrated day for they do more than is expected from them. In Australia, Canada, The United States and other countries, International Nurses Day is always part of a week-long celebration, usually referred to as National Nurses week.
This same day we recognize Florence Nightingale who became an essential figure in nursing in the 1850s during the Crimean war. She was stationed at a hospital where she headed a group of nurses who cared for injured British soldiers. When Florence first arrived at the hospital, she was struck by the desperate condition of the facilities. So, she improved strict standards of care and ensured that the wards were kept clean and well stocked with food and medical supplies.
Florence Nightingale’s experiences led her to campaign for reform in health care and nursing. In 1960, she opened up the Nightingale School of Nursing at St. Thomas Hospital in London.
I want to call upon the ministry of health to ensure that our nurses get their monthly salaries and allowances in good time so as to motivate them in their daily services to the people.