The International Maritime Hospital (IMaH), in collaboration with the Ghana News Agency Tema Regional Office, has jointly marked the 2023 International Nurses Day, which is on the theme “Our Nurse, Our Midwife, Our Future”.

The two bodies held a joint public advocacy health platform under the banner, “Your Health! Our Collective Responsibility” to highlight the contribution of nurses to the healthcare sector, their interrelation with the media, and their role in the general health care system.

Mr. Samuel Adu Ntiamoah, IMaH Registered General Nurse, said nurses are an integral part of the healthcare system because they respond to crises, emergencies, and the needs of the people from all angles.

He mentioned that nurses not only take care of the diseases of patients, but also their emotional and psychological welfare, safety, and recovery, among others.

“In the wake of COVID-19, we realized that there were some people who were going to leave an indelible mark in this world, and those were health care professionals, and among the healthcare professionals, we can attest to the fact that nurses can’t be done away with,” he stated.

Mr. Ntiamoah said that as part of the commemoration, the nurses wanted to intensify public education on the legalities, duties, and responsibilities of nurses and the development of the nurse profession, among others.

Ms. Joseline Adjoa Enchill, also an IMaH Registered General Nurse, said there were different categories of nursing, which included public health, midwifery, and infection control officers, who contribute massively to the healthcare fraternity.

She said nurses had an amount of knowledge and many diverse skills they spent years perfecting and developing, all the while working in decidedly tough environments while extreme stress was just a part of the job.

She emphasized that nurses helped bring new life into the world, care tirelessly for the sick and injured, and sometimes watch the patients they did everything to save pass away despite their best efforts

She called for respect and protection of nurses in the society.

Mr. Francis Ameyibor, Tema Regional Manager, Ghana News Agency, who spoke on the rights of a patient, explained that the patient had the right to receive treatment without discrimination irrespective fo religion, sex, age, nationality, race, ethnic group, disability, or source of payment.

He said the media needed to educate the public on the right of a patient to respectful care given by competent workers.