The Democratic Nursing Organisation of South Africa (Denosa), in partnership with the Mpumalanga Department of Health, recently celebrated International Nurses Day in Msukaligwa Local Municipality.
Some nurses from various areas in the province attended this event held at the El Shaddai Church. The event was celebrated under the theme ‘Our nurses, our future’.
International Nurses Day is celebrated around the globe every May 12, on the anniversary of Florence Nightingale’s birthday. She was born on May 12, 1820.
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“Being a nurse is a very special calling from God. Today we are paying tribute to all the thousands of provincial nurses who have been making and continue to make a real contribution and sacrifices to the public health system in our province. We considered this a significant day, because it raises awareness about the challenges and plight of the nursing profession. It allows us to acknowledge the tireless work that nurses do. This day highlights the work of nurses and allows them to take pride in their profession,” said the MEC for health, Sasekani Manzini.
She spoke about the shortage of staff and how it affects the workplace.
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“We are immersed in a global nursing workforce crisis, marked by critical shortages of nurses. The reasons for this are varied and complex, but key among them are unhealthy work environments that weaken performance or alienate nurses too often. It drives them away from specific settings or from the nursing profession itself. Staff shortages are no doubt a sore point, but you must know that government firmly remains committed to improving the current situation. We are in the process of recruiting more nurses to our facilities. I can proudly say that as Mpumalanga, we are still one of the few provinces that are employing all our student nurses as soon as they complete their studies, because we are committed to addressing the staff shortages.”
During the event, Denosa also presented a special award to the former MEC for health, Sibongile Manana, who is a nurse by profession.
