Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, Dr Bharati Pravin Pawar today addressed an event to mark the International Nurses day. The event was organised by the Indian Nursing Council in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. International Nurses Day is a global event observed on the birth anniversary of Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing, to honour the nurses in healthcare, for their diligence and service to society.

Congratulating the entire nursing fraternity for their dedicated service to the nation, Dr. Bharati Pravin Pawar said, “Nurses play a vital role in the healthcare industry and are the most important link between a doctor and the patient. Nurses are the heroes who attend to the needs of their patients, be it day or night without a frown on their face. They are the backbone of the healthcare industry, who tirelessly take care of all the requirements of the patients.”

Applauding the remarkable role of the nursing fraternity in the COVID pandemic, the Union Minister of State stated that no words are enough to thank the contribution made by the nurses during the COVID pandemic. This fills us with the deep thought of gratitude and respect for this noble profession. She further noted that Nursing is currently the largest occupational group in the health sector, accounting for approximately 59% of the health professionals and serves as the first point of contact and this makes their role all the more important in the healthcare delivery system. “A strong nursing sector is an essential building block of a strong healthcare sector. Nurses are the foundation of hospitals. They are the heart and soul of caring. Nurses play a key role in individual and community’s health. Investing in nursing will help in achieving our objectives of Universal Health Coverage through improved health services and disease prevention”, she added.

Highlighting the initiatives of the Government in the Nursing sector, the Union MoS briefed about a technology platform ‘Nurses Registration & Traking System’- A Live Register of Nurses developed by Indian Nursing Council and Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. The Indian Nurses Live Register is an online registry which provides latest information of the currently practicing nurses, thereby helping the Government in better manpower planning and policy making for the nursing professionals in India. In addition to this, Indian Nursing Council (INC) has also set up a skill simulation lab in Delhi NCR to provide state-of-the-art training to nursing faculty. Further, Nurse practitioner in Critical Care residency program has been developed by INC and specialized courses in Geriatric and psychiatry nursing are in pipeline, she added.