Nurses: a force for change

Students use celebration to support colleagues

Nursing students at Avondale have written messages of encouragement to their contemporaries in the South Pacific during International Nurses Day celebrations on May 12.

The Faculty of Nursing and Health will send the messages to registered nurses and students at Pacific Adventist University in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, where former Avondale lecturer Katherine Cooper is now dean of the School of Health Science. The messages will also go to the School of Nursing at Atoifi Adventist Hospital on Malaita in the Solomon Islands. Keynote speaker Julie Angari, a former dean of the school, provided some context. A partnership between Atoifi and Avondale sees Faculty of Nursing and Health staff members and students return each year to serve at the hospital.

Lecturer Sonja Dawson introduced the day’s theme: Nurses: a force for change—a vital resource for health, which aims to demonstrate to governments, employers and members of the community the role well-educated and well-informed nurses play in improving patient safety and the quality of health care. She also brought a sense of perspective, comparing the ratio of nurses and midwives to the population in developed countries such as Australia (1:120) with the ratio in developing countries such as Papua New Guinea (1:2000).

“You might not realise it, but you’ve signed up for lifelong learning,” she told the students. “If you allow yourselves to listen to that still small voice within, and act on the promptings you are given, and are faithful to continue the pursuit, I can guarantee your journey will be a satisfying one and one that you can and will be a force for change.”

International Nurses Day is held on May 12 each year, the anniversary of modern nursing founder Florence Nightingale’s birth. It honours nurses and the contribution they make to society. The International Council of Nurses has celebrated the day since 1965.