National Student Nurse Day

Photo c/o nationaldaycalendar.com

Today is May 8 and the planet is celebrating National Student Nurse Day.  This day was established by the American Nurses Association in 1998 to recognize student nurses and their achievements.

This day is also an extension of the celebration of National Nurses Day last May 6. And then there is the United Nations-declaration of May 12 as International Nurses Day, the anniversary of Florence Nightingale's birth.  This year's theme is Nursing: A voice to lead - Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

When I graduated from high school in the early 70's, half of our graduating class, took up nursing.  Most of them are now working in the USA, Middle East, UK, Canada, and Australia.  I had an early fear or phobia for blood and didn't pursue nursing, a career path that my family was contemplating on.  I just couldn't see myself enduring the studies while daily being exposed to blood and pain.

In 2011, there were 19.3 million nurses and midwives, according to the World Health Organization's (WHO) World Health Statistics Report.  The Learning Nurse Resource Network estimates around 44,000 nurses in New Zealand, 201,000 in Australia, 350,000 in Canada, 1.4 million in India, 488,000 in the Philippines, 621,000 in the United Kingdom, and 2.9 million in the USA.  Here is an interesting article about the global shortage of nurses.

We all know and are aware of the valuable service that nurses do to society.  I've witnessed students who've taken the nursing pathway and are now gainfully employed.  I also know of some friends and acquaintances who've taken nursing as a second course and are also now doing well in their chosen profession.  The hours are long but at the end of the day, you'll have that sense and feeling of fulfillment and completeness, knowing that you've made a difference and that you were instrumental in saving one's life.