Today we celebrate International Nurses Day and acknowledge the many ways that nurses have shown leadership in building the knowledge base, practice, presence and hope of palliative care. And for their leadership in health care generally.
The International Council of Nurses highlights the role of nurses as leaders in ‘health as a human right’, adding:
“Providing essential health care services to vulnerable populations is the foundation of the nursing profession, which is underpinned by a code of ethics ensuring the provision of health care to all, regardless of race, gender, religion, ethnicity or wealth.”
“Nursing care puts people at the centre of care to improve patient experiences, promote public health and reduce health inequalities. More than any other profession, nurses are the closest to those they treat and are best placed to assess the determinants of health and lead health systems towards more responsive frameworks.”
In their submission to the Inquiry into Quality of Care in Residential Aged Care the College of Nursing highlighted the role of nurses as leaders in advocacy, saying:
“Nurses are first and foremost resident advocates, and as such advocacy sits at the core of what it means to be a nurse and what the nursing profession is.”
For their leadership and advocacy, in practice, research and administration we celebrate the contribution of nurses to palliative and health care on International Nurses Day 2018.