Value - Respect – Protect – Invest: ICN launches International Nurses’ Day posters

The International Council of Nurses (ICN) launched today a series of International Nurses Day (IND) posters to celebrate the work of nurses and the IND theme Our Nurses. Our Future.

International Nurses Day will be celebrated on 12 May 2023 and is part of a yearlong Our Nurses. Our Future. campaign which sets out what nursing needs now and in the future in order to address the global health challenges and improve global health for all.

ICN President Dr Pamela Cipriano described the intent of the campaign:

“Nurses provide care and leadership to address global health challenges everywhere, often at great personal risk. They are the essential life force for health, yet our healthcare systems worldwide have fallen short and failed to value, protect, respect and invest in this precious resource. The world has mistakenly taken nurses for granted, treating them as an invisible and inexhaustible resource. That must now stop for the sake of nurses and global health.”

With the release of the first State of the World’s Nursing report in 2020, the Global Strategic Directions for Nursing & Midwifery in 2021, the Sustain and Retain in 2022 and Beyond in 2022 and our new Recover to Rebuild: Investing in the nursing workforce for health system effectiveness, ICN and other organisations have shown the evidence for change and called for action.

“The IND posters launched today are part of a set of resources which will be released in the lead up to International Nurses Day. This includes a social media toolkit, a Charter for Change, presenting 10 policy actions that governments and employers must take to create and sustain health care systems that are safe, affordable, accessible, and responsive, and a report setting out prescriptive evidence informing actions required for progress and transformation.

‘Nurses are key to healthier communities, responsive societies, thriving economies and powerful nations. Now is the time for policy makers, national and local decision-makers to take decisive steps to build and optimise an enduring, strong and sustainable nursing workforce.

‘It is now time to look to the future and demonstrate what these investments will mean for nursing and healthcare. The Our Nurses. Our Future. campaign will shine the light on nurses and on a brighter future.”

International Nurses Day is celebrated around the world every 12 May, the anniversary of Florence Nightingale's birth. ICN commemorates this important day each year with the production and distribution of the IND resources and evidence.