Invest in nurses: Official

By LULU MARK
INVESTMENT in nurses is necessary to improve the level of healthcare delivery at the Port Moresby General Hospital (PMGH) and the country, an official says.
The nurses at PMGH – commemorated International Nurses Day (IND) on Friday, which began with a parade that had nurses wearing uniforms portraying the evolution of the nursing profession from its birth in the 18th Century, continued with plays, speeches and a lunch.
PMGH director of nursing services Sr Carol Hosea said the IND had been observed since 1965 to honour nurses every year on May 12, and was also the birth anniversary of the founder of modern nursing Florence Nightingale who was born in 1820.
Sr Carol said the theme for this year was “Nurses: A voice to lead – a vision for the future healthcare”.
“Nursing requires strong leadership – nurse leaders should be equipped with the knowledge, strategies and strength to lead and manage health services into a healthier future,” she said.
“We should invest in nurse leaders to enhance their contribution to health services and to participate effectively in health policy development and decision making.”
PMGH chief executive officer Dr Paki Molumi said nurses were the unsung heroes taking care of the sick and injured which required hard work with long shifts filled with physical, emotional stress, hence, they deserved to be recognised and their effort celebrated annually.
PMGH vision was to provide tertiary healthcare to the people and was embarking on providing specialist services in cardiac, renal, oncology, neurology and many others, however, a huge skill gap was identified which the management was committed to address.