Every Nurse is a Florence Nightingale

Nurses have been the thread that close the wounds of the world and helps them heal. The thread may seem little but it is certainly strong and vital in the process.

2020 is UN’s International Year of the Nurse and Midwife. The year 2020 began troublesome for nurses around the world due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

According to the data obtained from National Health Commission in China, of the entire 42,600 medical workers dispatched to support the Hubei Province ( the area where COVID-19 had its start) about 28,600 are nurses. That is almost 70% of the total.

The Hindu reported on 23rd April,2020 that at least 156 nurses and 96 doctors in India were tested positive for COVID-19. Braving the deadly coronavirus, Nurses are constantly joining the fight against this virus and Indian nurses are leading the way.

Just a day before the International Nurses Day, 88 nurses from India reached Dubai to help United Arab Emirates in their fight against COVID-19. Nurses’ don’t just stitch the wounds or take the knives like we see in the movies.

They perform a lot of invaluable roles in the ICU like using the ventilators, monitors, hemodialysis machines, ECMO and other important equipment that could save life.

The first batch of nurses have landed in UAE with the support of Indian Consulate and the host nation’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.

Out of the 88, around 60 nurses are trained to work in critical care. These Indians nurses are reflecting the light of hope that shone brighter in the Crimean War in 1850s.

Nursing as an education became possible because of Florence Nightingale. Her efforts to formalize nursing education led to the establishment of The Nightingale School of Nursing in London in 1860.

That woman who changed the way medical attention was given to patients was born 200 years ago and today the nursing fraternity cherishes her 200th Birth Anniversary by serving the world in times we need them the most.

Boris Johnson, Prime Minister of UK who was affected by COVID-19 submitted his sincerest gratitude to two nurses – Jenny from New Zealand and Luis from Portugal for being by his bed side for 48 hours during his treatment for the coronavirus infection.

He said that he would be grateful for the rest of his life to the doctors and nurses who helped him.

India, the world’s second largest country is not immune to the virus but the nation’s  core strength from the medical fraternity and Govt has helped it keep COVID-19 quite far away from what it has done to other strong nations.

Though nurses have to be around the clock yet be underpaid, thought they have to lay their life on the line and yet be undermined, Nurses like unsung heroes and martyrs do their role without any demand. The sacrifices Nurses have made this year makes them the heroes we should behold for every year to come. The Covai Mail feels that every nurse is a Florence Nightingale and submits its tribute to all the Nurses in this fight.