In recognition of their contribution to the community as a whole and to the recovery of patients and in the rehabilitation process in particular, lunches and afternoon tea parties were arranged for the nursing staff across New South Wales Wednesday last. The occasion was the International Nurses Day.

NSW Nurses Association General Secretary Brett Holmes said the day provides the general public with an opportunity each year to reflect on the vital work nurses do in the community. “This special day is a chance to recall and celebrate the magnificent contribution hundreds of thousands of nurses have made to NSW over the years,” he said.

In addition, the day serves as an occasion to recognise the importance of nursing to our personal and social well-being – both now and in the future.

In hospitals, health facilities, community health, disability and aged care settings throughout the State, nurses are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year to provide care for the sick, injured and elderly, asserted Holmes.

Apart from celebrations, the luncheon at Young hospital saw the nurses taking a pledge to raise awareness about the challenge to prevent and manage chronic illness throughout the world, which, as per GSAHS Director of Nursing and Midwifery Karen Lenihan, was a growing threat to health and development.