Most Americans agree that a nurse has played an important role in their life on several occasions. The nurse may work in a doctor's office, a school, a hospital or a nursing home. Some provide private care in a patient's home. Each is honored for a plethora of reasons: a caring nature, empathy, selflessness, dependability, honesty, trustworthiness, and commitment.
May 6 is designated National Nurses Day and Nurses Week extends through May 12th, Florence Nightingale's birthday. Millions will honor those who followed in her footsteps and regard her as their role model.
There are currently 3,131,000 Registered Nurses (RNs) in the United States and 836,000 Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs), according to 2016 Kaiser Family Foundation research. For 14 straight years, the public has ranked nursing as the top profession for honesty and ethical standards, according to Gallup.
The theme for National Nurses Week in 2016 is Culture of Safety: It Starts With YOU. It refers to the responsibility of everyone, including doctors, nurses, hospital personnel at all levels and the patients and their visitors.
A culture of safety fosters transparency, accountability and results when nurses:
* feel supported, listened to and understood;
* feel free to foster open conversations about safety issues, including their personal fatigue or stress, workplace violence, incivility and bullying;
* feel enabled to prioritize safe staffing and help connect individual, team and organizational safety goals;
* can ensure the delivery of quality health care to patients, families and society.
National Nursing Week in Canada is May 9-15, with the theme "With you every step of the way,"
x0516-114.txt 0516-111c.jpg
