Among the required classes in nursing programs are those that include instruction about the history of nursing. Florence Nightingale in the mid-1850s is a reference point for many in association with nursing as a profession. Yet a rich, and largely unknown, history exists in family, neighbors and friends caring for loved ones in their residences, people who tended to the ill and injured on battlefields, those who provided attentively for individuals sickened by plagues and epidemics, etc. (https://www.nursing.upenn.edu/nhhc/american-nursing-an-introduction-to-the-past/). Today, palliative care nurses are highly trained and are making significant contributions to the healthcare chronically ill people receive along with serving their family units.
People in the United States publicly began advocating for recognition of the work done by nurses as early as 1953. In March 1982, President Ronald Reagan signed a proclamation designating that May 6, 1982 would be recognized as “National Recognition Day for Nurses”. Since 1994, the American Nurses Association has recognized the week of May 6-12 as “National Nurses Week”. The theme of this year’s recognition is “Nurses Make a Difference” (nursingworld.org).
The scope of this opinion editorial cannot fully address all that more than 5 million registered nurses do in America. Nurses comprise the largest segment of the healthcare professions. Nurses remain near the top of lists of the most respected professions. Nurses perform duties that are essential in exceptional ways as they care for individuals, family units and societies. Nurses provide compassionate care extending the best of evidence-based acute and chronic care to people with significant healthcare needs.
Nurses necessarily assess and address immediate healthcare needs on a daily basis. They also go above and beyond what may have expected would be their roles in order to expand the availability of care to people as they did most excellently during the recent Covid pandemic. I was the recipient of such commitment to others when I was hospitalized during the early stages of Covid and all the risks for healthcare providers were not fully known. Palliative care nurses had a strong presence in challenging situations as well during the Covid era.
Palliative care nurses touch people physically, emotionally and spiritually, and they change their lives. They educate and encourage people across their lifespan. They assist people in achieving their personal goals by helping them to avoid illness, treating their acute sickness, managing the symptoms of chronic illness, reducing their hospitalizations, improving their quality of life, and showing individuals how they can be the decision-makers regarding the healthcare they receive.
Palliative care nurses are a part of medical care that are advancing the roles of nurses, and you do this with professionalism and heart. This is why the people and their family units for whom you care express appreciation for your skills and expertise. People receiving palliative care express a high level of satisfaction with the treatment you provide.
National Nurses Week is a time to express our appreciation to palliative care nurses who provide kind and empathetic care. We should praise them for their critical thinking, interventions and advocacy for personal well-being. The wholistic care you provide deserves commendation.
It takes grit to be a palliative care nurse and to respond flexibly to the varied demands nurses face daily. Nurses caring for the critically ill earn the confidence of the individuals and family units for whom they provide care. Most often, palliative care nurses are astounding and extraordinary in their service at the times of our greatest needs.
To those of you who are palliative care nurses, thank you for caring for our illnesses, stresses and fears. Thank you for going “the extra mile” in providing for our healthcare. Thank you for the great differences you make.
Happy National Nurses Week!
Gary W. Dodd
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