6 Things to Think About During National Nurses Week
In honor of National Nurses Day on May 6 — and the ensuing National Nurses Week — here are six things to know to help celebrate the incredible nurses in our lives.
We take this moment to reflect on the contributions of all nurses and especially to celebrate our own fabulous team. Thank you!
- According to a study conducted by the consumer sentiment firm Reputation, nurses play the largest role in the overall hospital experience.
- Nurses walk an average of four to five miles during a 12-hour shift.
- Only 60% of all employed nurses work in hospitals. Others work in schools, military bases, war zones, research labs, prisons, homes and clinics, providing care wherever and whenever it is needed.
- National Nurses Week has been celebrated for over 50 years. It was signed into existence by President Nixon in 1974, 20 years after the first proposal for a national “Nurse Day” was sent to President Eisenhower by Dorothy Sutherland, of the U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare.
- President Ronald Reagan declared National Nurses Day on May 6, 1982. His proclamation came a year after he reached out to thank every nurse who helped to save his life following the assassination attempt on his life in 1981.
- National Nurses week concludes on May 12, Florence Nightingale’s birthday. She is widely regarded as the mother of modern nursing. During the Crimean War of the 1850s, Nightingale, known as “the lady with the lamp,” led a group of nurses into the war zone to provide care for British soldiers. When she returned to England, she founded the Nightingale Training School for Nurses. Nightingale transformed the profession of nursing. She not only educated a generation of nurses, but also inspired society to view nursing as an honorable vocation for all.