Page 110 - Human Rights

Faculty of Nursing
Adult care Nursing Department

The adoption of human rights principles as part of the ethical framework of nurses or midwives

represents a commitment to defend important values and constitutes a starting point for

professional advocacy.

Some organizations have undertaken specific initiatives in support of nurses’ rights – the support
by the ICN for Bulgarian nurses imprisoned in Libya– but NGOs also have much to contribute in

encouraging rights-oriented advocacy.

The US organization Physicians for Human Rights, working with the local nursing association,

sponsored a workshop in 2005 with Kenyan nurses to strengthen professional advocacy for a
better national nursing bill.

There appears to be a potential space for fruitful dialogue between nursing professional bodies
and NGOs concerning areas of shared human rights concerns.

International Days for Midwives and Nurses

The International Confederation of Midwives established the idea of an International Day

following suggestions and discussion among member associations in the late 1980s, and launched

the initiative formally in 1992.

The International Day of the Midwife is celebrated on 5 May each year.

In 2005 the theme was “Midwives and women – a partnership for health”.

The International Council of Nurses organizes an action each year on 12 May.

In 2005 it organized a campaign against harmful counterfeit medicines as the theme for
International

Nurses Day. The ICN distributed an information and action toolkit and encouraged nurses to take

action against substandard medicines.

106 Academic Year 2025/2026