Nursing Now Nigeria, What You Need to Know by OLUWATOSIN K. Odunayo.

Nursing Now Nigeria, What You Need to Know by OLUWATOSIN K.Odunayo.

NursingNow is a global campaign launched in five countries on 27th February year 2018 and has reached more than 40 national NursingNow groups around the world with Nigeria recently inclusive.

If by now you haven’t heard of NursingNow campaign, it is either you’re a nurse but not in nursing or you’re in nursing but not a nurse, whichever way, this article is aimed at creating public awareness of NursingNow Nigeria campaign and the need for the involvement of public private partnership for better output of the campaign.

Here are five things you must know about the campaign…

1.) It is an initiative of Burdett Trust For Nursing
The Burdett Trust For Nursing is an independent charitable trust named after Sir Henry Burdett KCB, the founder of the Royal National Pension Fund For Nurses
( RNPFN ). The Trust was setup in year 2002 in recognition of the foundation philosophy and structure of the RNPFN.

The campaign is spearheaded in Nigeria by Nurses On Air ( NOA ) in collaboration with National Association Of Nigerian Nurses In North America ( NANNNA ).

Nurses, midwives and allied health professions makeup majority of the healthcare workforce and play a pivotal role in direct care to patients. The Trust makes it funds to empower nurses and make significant improvements to the patient care environment. Nursing Now campaign is in collaboration with International Council of Nursing (ICN) and World Health Organization ( WHO ) .

2.) It is Nursing Now or Never!

Nurses  and midwives are unsung heroes in promoting the health needs of the nation. Empowering nurses and enhancing their capacities will save lives and improve health and wellbeing at all times.

Nursing Now campaign recognizes that nurses are at the heart of country’s effort to improve health for all. As one of the most trusted professionals, nurses provide effective and quality care for people of all ages and are central in addressing  the increasing burden of non-communicable diseases.

They are indispensable members of the health team and as health professionals closest to the public play a crucial role in health promotion, disease prevention , treatments and care.

3.) Universal health coverage is the goal

In September 2015 the nations of the world signed up to the ambitious goal of ensuring that everyone in the world should have access to healthcare – Universal Health Coverage and that nobody should be left behind. They also came up with a report ( Triple Impact Of Nursing Report ) which unambiguously stated that Universal Health Coverage CANNOT be achieved without strengthening nursing globally.

This is partly about increasing the number of nurses but also enabling them to work to their full potentials.
It goes further to argue that strengthening nursing will have the  triple impact of improving health, promoting gender equality and supporting economic growth.

4.) It is a 3year Long global campaign.

The Nursing Now Nigeria campaign would be running from 2018 through 2020. It is aimed at raising the profile of Nigerian Nurses, releasing their potentials to deliver universal health coverage, improve lives of women and strengthen local economies.

5.) Nigerian Government MUST be involved

Improving universal health coverage is not a one man business. It is a collaborative effort between the government and non-governmental organizations.

Much about the campaign will be familiar to Nurses and Nursing leaders but this alone cannot bring about the change we desired.

Politicians, non-nursing health leaders must be involved to create a radical change in how nurses are perceived and in what they are permitted and enabled to do. We urge the Nigerian government to work with commonwealth , Europe, WHO and others to take a leading role in raising awareness of the opportunities and potentials of nursing.

Creating political commitments and establishing a process for supporting the development of nursing globally. The government should take the leading role by first investing in nursing else, Nursing Now Nigeria campaign is dead on arrival.