It’s National Nurses Day!

With over 3 million nurses in the U.S. today, the professionals make up the highest percentage of the country’s health care workforce.

Especially important are public health nurses, who work to promote wellness and prevent illness. They are on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic, and we owe them a debt of gratitude for all that they do.

National Nurses Day, observed in the U.S. each year on May 6, marks the beginning of National Nurses Week, which recognizes the crucial role these health providers play. The week ends on May 12, which is International Nurses Day and the birthday of Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing.

According to the World Health Organization, the world needs 9 million more nurses and midwives if it is to achieve universal health coverage by 2030. WHO declared 2020 the International Year of the Nurse and the Midwife and made these professionals the focus of World Hand Hygiene Day on May 5.

Hand hygiene is one of the most effective ways to reduce the spread of pathogens and prevent infections, including the COVID-19 virus, and nurses and midwives play a crucial role in health settings to promote the practice, according to WHO.

Let’s show appreciation for our nurses today by washing our hands and helping protect health workers, each other and ourselves!