World Health Day 2020: Celebrating The Hard-work And Dedication Of Nurses And Midwives

The World Health Organization observes 7th April as World Health Day. This year which has become the year of the pandemic, the theme celebrates nurses and midwives for their hard work and dedication.

The WHO began observing World Health Day on 7 April from 1950. (Image: Getty)

World Health Day 2020: The World Health Organization observes APRIL 7 as World Health Day. This year which has become the year of the pandemic, the theme celebrates nurses and midwives for their hard work and dedication. The WHO began observing World Health Day on 7 April from 1950. The need for a World Health Day was discussed in the First Health Assembly in 1948. Every World Health Day focuses on a certain key area in the healthcare system and aims to develop it. The theme of the year was chosen to draw attention to the contribution the nurses and midwives have made to the ongoing fight against COVID-19. According to WHO, this World Health Day is honoring the contribution of nurses and midwives, recognizing their vital role in keeping the world healthy. Nurses and other health workers are at the frontlines of COVID-19 response, putting their own health at risk to protect the broader community. Comprising more than two-thirds of the health workforce in the WHO Western Pacific Region, nurses are critical in responding to health needs in all settings and across the lifespan. In the 2020 International Year of the Nurse and the Midwife, the World Health Day is an opportunity to highlight the work of nursing and midwifery around the world, while celebrating this workforce as one of the most valuable resources of every country.

• The global nursing workforce is around 28 million, of which more than 19 million are professional nurses.
• The Western Pacific Region has around 7 million nurses, who comprise a quarter of the global nursing workforce.
• 95% of the nurses in the Western Pacific Region are women.
• Half (51%) of nurses in the Western Pacific Region are below 35 years of age.
• One nurse out of three (33%) in the Region is born or trained in a country other than their current country of practice.

Even before the onset of the pandemic, India was suffering from a shortage of two million nurses (WHO, 2019). The nurse to patient ratio for India is only around 2.1 nurses per 1000 population. There is a need to invest in nursing education and jobs and today is the day to observe this.