2022 National Nurses Week in Akwesasne

To acknowledge the contributions of nurses and call attention to their working conditions, the International Council of Nurses in the U.S. established May 12 as International Nurses Day in 1974. The celebration was extended to a week a few years later, and National Nurses Week was officially born in 1994. Sponsored and promoted by the American Nurses Association, the week-long event highlights the crucial contributions that nurses make to the community.'

In Canada, the National Nursing Week annual celebrations take place from the Monday to the Sunday of the same week as Florence Nightingale's birthday, May 12.

The 2022 theme this year is #WeAnswerTheCall and was developed by Canadian Nurses Association, to showcase the many roles that nurses play in a patient's health-care journey. The pandemic brought to light the courage and commitment that nurses work under every day and showed the important role that nurses play in the community.

In 1971, the International Council of Nurses designated May 12, the birthday of nursing pioneer Florence Nightingale, as International Nurses Day. In 1985, CNA members passed a resolution to begin negotiations with the federal government to have the week containing May 12 proclaimed as National Nurses Week annually. Soon after, the federal minister of health proclaimed the second week of May as National Nurses Week. In 1993, the name was changed to National Nursing Week to emphasize the profession's accomplishments as a discipline.

In the U.K., nurses celebrate with an annual ritual based on Florence Nightingale's nighttime visits to injured soldiers, which earned her the nickname "Lady with the Lamp." On May 12, a ceremonial lamp is passed along a line of nurses from the Nurses' Chapel at Westminster Abbey, London, to the abbey's High Altar, symbolizing the passage of knowledge.

The Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe noted, "Some of life's biggest moments are spent with a nurse-from when we are born to when we pass away as well as the many ups and downs in between. Nurses Day and Nurses Week provide the perfect opportunities to celebrate the nurses who care for us, our friends and our families. They have an important job to do, and it is our duty to thank them every year. Our patients love you and the hard work you do does not go unnoticed. Thank you for everything. Happy Nurses Week!"

Mohawk Council paid tribute to the many nurses who serve Akwesasne, "Happy National Nurses Appreciation Week to the caring, dedicated nurses of Iakhihsohtha Lodge! They make a difference, every day. Nia:wen to our nurses at Tsiionkwanonhso:te Longterm Care Facility! Happy Nurses Appreciation Week to the dedicated and caring nurses of the Akwesasne Medical Clinic!"