The International Nurses Day was celebrated on 12 May by BIH nurse associations, health and educational facilities, under the slogan “Nurses: a Voice to Lead – Health for All”. 

Its theme is chosen by the International Council of Nurses (ICN) each year and it has been for three year in a row “Nurses: a Voice to Lead”. The focus in 2017 was on the role of nurses in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, while in 2018 it was on the human right to health. This year, emphasis was on the role of nurses in achieving “health for all” in the context of major global health challenges.

ICN believes that nurses, as part of multidisciplinary teams can create health systems that take into account the social, economic, cultural and political determinants of health. It is possible to address health inequalities and improve the health of everyone everywhere, through a refocusing on health promotion and illness.

Nurses all over the world every day are advocating for Health for All in the most challenging circumstances with limited resources to deliver health care to those most in need. At the same time, owing to the fact that they are closest to the patient, nurses are also helping to bring their voice to the policy table.

Nurses are ideally placed to lead and inform health services decision making and policy development because of their role as patient advocate, their scientific reasoning skills, and their numbers and range of care provided across the life-cycle and care continuum.

ICN believes that  the time is ripe for nurses to assert their leadership. As the largest health profession across the world, working in all areas where health care is provided, nursing has vast potential and value if appropriately harnessed to finally achieve the vision of Health for All.

Additional Information:

- Health for All Nursing, Global Health and Universal Health Coverage - International Nurses Day 2019 -ICN - PDF document
- Posters ICN - PDF document
- News about the celebration of the International Day of Nursing in Brcko published on the page of the - InfoBrcko.com