Celebrating Our Pediatric Nurses

Let us hug (from 6 feet away) and celebrate all the nurses who work in the children’s hospital and the department of pediatrics! National Nurses Week begins each year on May 6th and ends on May 12th, Florence Nightingale’s birthday. This annual recognition goes back to 1974 when the International Council of Nurses proclaimed that May 12 would be “International Nurse Day.” The American Nurses Association (ANA) has been supporting and promoting the esteemed profession of nursing since the ANA founding in 1896.

In February 1982, the ANA Board of Directors formally acknowledged May 6, 1982 as “National Nurses Day.” That year, a joint resolution of the United States Congress designated May 6 as “National Recognition Day for Nurses”, and President Ronald Reagan signed the proclamation on March 25. In 1990, the ANA Board of Directors expanded the recognition of nurses to a week-long celebration, declaring May 6 – 12, 1991 as National Nurses Week. There was abundant nursing pride on display in the children’s hospital last week, as there should be! Thanks from the bottom of our hearts to the nurses who embody Florence Nightingale selflessness, courage, dedication, intelligence, empathy and compassion every day!

This article originally appeared in the Baystate Children’s Hospital “News Now” Newsletter.