Nursing Now is a health care programme started by the Burdett Trust for Nursing. It has collaborated with the International Council of Nurses and the World Health Organization. Nursing Now works to bring improvement in the health services across the world by developing the profile of nursing, convincing policymakers and putting forward opportunities for more nurses in higher positions. That’s the vision of Nursing Now.
Nursing Now also puts great emphasis to convince health leaders to make investment in nursing and innovate new models of caregiving that increases the nurses’ contributions for gaining Universal Health Coverage. It has got full support from a Campaign Board that constitutes of nurses and non-nurses from around the world.
The Campaign Board have individuals from 16 countries with individuals representing from International Council of Nurses, the Burdett Trust for Nursing, and the World Health Organization. Nursing Now has assumed immense importance as a social movement that is rapidly growing.
There are groups working in a network for influencing the policy globally and nationally, and 587 Nursing Now groups are active in 117 countries. Below are five areas on which the Nursing Now campaign focuses:
- Making sure that nurses and midwives get a more strong voice in the policymaking of health;
- Encouraging more investers in the workforce of nursing;
- Advocating for more nurses in leadership positions;
- Encouraging research which helps to understand where nursing may make a significant impact, and
- sharing examples of best practice for nursing.
Nursing Now Campaign was started, in the year 2018, where HRH Duchess of Cambridge, who is Nursing Now Patron, was present. There were events all over the world, including Switzerland, the UK, Jamaica, Jordan, USA, and South Africa. The Nursing Now campaign was started after the report of the Triple Impact was formed. The report is all about improving global health, empowering nurses and supporting gender equality.
The countries of the world and people at large pledged their support to the campaign. The campaign is continuing. It will continue till the ending of 2020, which also happens to be the 200th birth anniversary of Florence Nightingale. The year 2020, is thus being celebrated as a year of the Nurse and the Midwife.
Nursing Now has come into existence because the countries all over the world are facing crisis to promise standard health care. Many countries face the challenge of scarce resources and a continual rise in chronic diseases. There is climate climate emergency, refugee problem and an ageing population which are causing a strain on the health system. Besides that, there is an acute shortage of workers in the health care industry. That puts additional pressure on the already tattered health infrastructure. There aren’t adequate health professionals, such as nurses to fight these threats.
By the year 2030, an estimated nine million nurses and midwives will be required to address these and other emerging challenges. Healthcare is going to be more and more community-based. It will be people-centred, and there will be more focus on the prevention of diseases and better technology. One can witness the needs are changing in the 21st century. In the changed scenario, the nurses have, by far, more important role in the healthcare sector. Proper deployment and evaluation of nurses will also be the need of the hour.
There will be a need for Nurses to participate in decision-making and amendments of policies. The working conditions of the nurses need to be improved. Continual training, for increasing the potential to the fullest for nurses and midwives is imperative. It will lead to the achievement of Universal Health Coverage, where everybody will have access to modern healthcare.
Its Value Goes by the Pledge That Everybody Should Have the Right to Good Health and Quality Health Care Services.
In the present scenario, a “Health in All Policies” approach promises to deliver the goodness to all. It is a universal truth, that when the healthcare workers and the public work as partners, there will be the development of the health manpower. It will also lead to the introduction of new models for health promotion.
The success of Health Now initiatives will depend on bringing nursing to the forefront of thinking on global health. It will also depend on enabling nurses to be proactive in improving global health. The focus is on nursing, but midwifery is also considered important. It is possible to see the following goals being achieved by the ending of 2020:
- More investment in professional development, education and improvement in employment conditions of nurses.
- Universal spread of effective practice in nursing.
- Larger and more forceful inclusion of nurses and midwives in the global health policy.
- Nurses to be deployed in leadership positions across the countries of the world.
Nurses certainly have a greater role to play in the 21st century. The services of the nurses will be more community-based and more people-centred. There will be greater use of technology. To gain the best out of the nurses, they must be trained and deployed effectively and holistically. They should be empowered to be included in the decision-making positions. There is a need for nurses to play a leading role.
Why the world needs nursing campaign
There are huge challenges faced by the countries of the world caused by an ageing population, degradation of the environment, migration of people, rising incidents of chronic diseases and scarce resources. A rapid rise in the incidents of heart ailments and diabetes is straining the health systems. In certain underdeveloped regions, there are infectious diseases like HIV/AIDS. The shortfall of healthcare workers is putting pressure on tackling these problems.
It is estimated, that by 2030 about 9 million more nurses will be needed globally. Under the present circumstances, the nursing community is unable to work to their potential to the fullest due to several reasons. One of the reasons is that nurses are not included as participants in policymaking and decision making.
There is a potential of nurses that are untapped due to the strict hierarchy under which the entire system operates. Apart from training in nursing, training the nurses to take on leadership and decision-making positions will lead to much better performance by the health sector.
It requires training of nurses in leadership that will impact the system tremendously. If nurses are empowered and given better working conditions, their contribution to the health sector will improve manyfold. They will be the key players in providing solutions to today’s health-related challenges.
Nurses play a very important role by working at the community level. If they are trained and provided with an opportunity to work, utilising their full potential, they will deliver impressive results in the health community. If the skills of nurses is maximised, it will lead to the goals of Universal Health Coverage. It will make sure that everybody has right to best health care and everybody is taken very good care of.
The Principles Guiding Nursing Now Campaign
The campaign is based on the following set of principles and values:
Everyone has the right to good health and health care.
Everyone and every organization have something to contribute
Education, social capital, economic status, and the environment that has affected the health of individuals
The success of the campaign depends on people to work together. Health workers and the people can bring in their respective skills and expertise together in meeting some shared goals.
There is a need for the development of the health working force and the innovation of newer models of healthcare.
Nursing Now has the following collaborators:
- World Health Organization
- Burdett Trust for Nursing
- International Council of Nurses
These are the partners of Nursing Now Campaign
- BUPA
- Commonwealth Nurses and Midwives Federation
- Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
- Glaxo Smith Kline
- ICAP, Columbia University
- International Collaboration for Community Health Nursing Research
- United Nations Population Fund
- KPMG
- National Academy of Medicine
- NHS Horizons
- National University of Singapore
- The Aga Khan University, Nairobi
- THET
- Royal College of Nursing
- World Innovation Summit for Health
Nursing Now groups in India
- AIIMS New Delhi , Bhubaneswar, Jodhpur,
- All Manipur Nurses Group
- Apollo College of Nursing
- Apollo Hospitals
- Artemis Hospital
- Aware Gleneagles Global Hospital
- Be Max academy for Nurses
- C.U. Shah University
- Chennai, Kauvery Hospital
- Chirayu Nursing College, Bhopal
- Chitrini Nursing College & College
- Christ Hospital Trust
- Community Health Officer Nurses, Manipur
- Continental Hospital
- Department of Health and Family Welfare Govt Of Sikkim
- Divine Institute of Nursing Science Kalaburagi
- DNH
- Dr Rela Institute and Medical Centre
- Gleneagles Global Health City, BGS, LKP
- Global centre for capacity building
- Global Hospital
- Government Medical College and Hospital Aurangabad (Maharashtra)
- In Search of Roots
- Innovative Alliance for Public Health
- Institute Of Nursing Education, Sir J J Group Of Hospitals, Mumbai
- JIET College Of Nursing
- JIET College Of Nursing
- Kauvery Hospital, Chennai, Hosur, Karaikudi, Salem, Trichy
- KLE Academy of Higher Education & Research, Belagavi
- Kongunad Hospitals & Kongunadu college of Nursing
- Krishana Institute of nursing science and research kanpur UP
- M. L. Charitable Trust, Mumbai
- Manikaka Topawala Institute of Nursing
- Metro Hospital & Cancer Research Center
- Mims Gudur
- Panna Dhai Maa Subharti Nursing College
- Parvathy Hospital
- PES college of nursing
- Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research
- Qureshi Educational & Social Charitable Trust
- Rani Meyyammai College of Nursing, Annamalai University
- Ratnaprabha Nursing College Vadnagar
- Safdarjang Hospital
- Saroj Lalji Mehritra Global Nursing College
- Shri Vasantrao Naik Government College & Hospital
- Shri Vinoba Bhave Civil Hospital, Silvassa, Dadra and Nagar Haveli
- SPHERE
- Tamilnadu Nurses and Midwives Council
- Tata Institute of Social Sciences
- Tata memorial hospital
- The Nursing Teachers Association
- TNAI Rajasthan
- Tripurasundari College of Nursing
- Vinayaka Mission’s Annapoorana College of Nursing, Salem
- Vinayaka Missions College of Nursing, Puducherry
