On their International Day … Nursing staff fully prepared to perform their duty

Damascus, SANA-On May 12^th every year, the world celebrates the International Nurses Day with the aim of shedding light on the key role of the health cadres who work in the field of nursing and who exert relentless efforts to meet the needs of society which have recently witnessed a notable increase due to the difficult times which we are passing through in light of the outbreak of the novel Coronavirus (Covid-19) in all countries of the world.

In Syria, male and female nurses continue their work as a basic part of the work of the medical cadres as they provide healthcare for patients at the hospitals and the health and medical centers.

Nurses in Syria have performed their job to the fullest during the terrorist war waged against their country, and today they exert all possible efforts for the continuity of the work of the health sector and for facing the challenges imposed on them as we find them today ready to address the coronavirus and to provide healthcare at the quarantine centers around the clock.

Chairwoman of the Syndicate of Nursing and Health and Medical Professions, Yusra Malil told SANA that nursing cadres, along with other medical cadres, are doing their duty to ensure providing high quality services and care to patients, stressing that the nursing cadres are today the first line of defense side by side with doctors against Coronavirus.

The number of medical cadres working in the field of nursing according to Malil reaches up to 64 thousand nurses, and there are 11 nursing schools and 4 colleges scattered in various provinces, indicating that the Syndicate is working to guarantee all the rights of workers in the nursing profession and other health professions.

The nature of the work of the nurse Zainab Al-Katib requires making great efforts and taking all personal preventive measures because she is one of the medical cadres working in the Quarantine Center in Dar al-Aman in Kafarsouseh, which receives Syrians returning from abroad, as she indicated that she is doing her professional duty with all responsibility and great eagerness to take safety measures for residents and medical cadres.

From al-Mowasat University Hospital in Damascus, Head of the Nursing Department, Lina Mahmoud, pointed out that working in the nursing profession requires in addition to playing the medical role and implementing the treatment plan set by the doctor, a major human role in providing psychological support to patients, which is part of the treatment, stressing that the nature of the work this period in terms of addressing the Coronavirus requires more efforts.

Mohamed Hammad, the supervisor of the nurses in the hospital’s chest care department, stressed that the nature of his work requires getting in contact with patients suspected of having Coronavirus, and that this is within the duty imposed by his profession on him which he performs optimally.

On May 12^th each year, the International Day of the Nurse is celebrated worldwide and the 200th anniversary of the birth of the well-known British nurse Florence Nightingale who was the founder of modern nursing.

Historically, as well as today, nurses are at the forefront of fighting epidemics and pandemics –  providing high quality and respectful treatment and care. They are often the first and sometimes the only health professional that people see and the quality of their initial assessment, care and treatment is vital.

Ruaa al-Jazaeri