Photo By Desmond Martin | Cmdr. Mojica poses with an Indonesian teacher and school children during a visit to SD...... read more read more
The Navy and Marine Corps Public Health Center (NMCPHC) kicks off National Nurses Week, by honoring all nurses who have served or are currently serving across the DoD. National Nurses Week begins each year on May 6th and ends on May 12th, Florence Nightingale's birthday.
During National Nurses Week, NMCPHC celebrates the science of protecting and improving the health of people and their communities by shining a spotlight on the experts that make it happen.
The 2023 Nurses Week theme “Nurses Make a Difference: Anytime, Anywhere – Always” honors the unwavering commitment of military nurses throughout the DOD, and the value they provide to the unified health care team in accomplishing their medical readiness mission. Cmdr. Susan Mojica, a Navy Nurse and Director for Population Health, NMCPHC, shares what National Nurse Week means to her.
“Nurse Week is a time to reflect upon and honor the contributions of nurses everywhere,” said Mojica. “The American Nurses’ Association has designated May 6-12 as National Nurses’ Week – it culminates on Florence Nightingale’s (the founder of modern nursing) birthday.”
Since the American Revolution, military nurses have served their country. Nurses have provided unique contributions to military medicine during peace time and conflict. Wherever they were assigned, Navy nurses served with distinction, providing care of the highest quality to thousands of wounded servicemen who had suffered burns, loss of limbs, and other severe injuries.
“The Navy Nurse Corps was officially established in 1908, and the first Nurse Corps Officers are referred to as the Sacred Twenty,” said Mojica. “Nurses served in the military long before 1908, though.”
The roles nurses play goes beyond serving in a hospital and clinic, where they often connect patients with other medical personnel. They can also be found in research labs, in classrooms, evaluating informatics and performing analysis.
“Nurses impact the entire healthcare field – clinically, administratively, direct care, care planning, patient, family, community, organization, etc.,” said Mojica. “The challenge is to find an aspect of healthcare that nurses do not touch. I don’t think there is much awareness of how diverse the career field is and just how far nursing reaches in society. As a profession, nurses are in hospitals, clinics, schools, homes, public health departments, higher education, the workplace (occupational health nurses), entertainment venues (theme parks, cruise lines), religious settings (parish nurses), and undoubtedly many other settings.” May 13 marks the 115th birthday of the Navy Nurse Corps. The Navy Nurse Corps was established in 1908, but the nurses were known only as “supernumeraries,” without rank. Then-President Theodore Roosevelt signed the Naval Appropriations Bill that authorized the establishment of the Nurse Corps as a unique staff corps of the Navy but, it was not until 1942 that the 77th Congress authorized Permanent Relative Rank for Navy nurses, ranging from Ensign to Lieutenant Commander.
“The challenges and obstacles overcome over the years by the nurses who built the Nurse Corps into the professional organization that it is today were not insignificant,” said Mojica. “When I reflect on that and consider the incredible nurses I have crossed paths with over the course of my Navy career, it is truly humbling.”
The Navy and Marine Corps Public Health Center (NMCPHC) develop and shape public health for the U.S. Navy and Marines Corps through health surveillance, epidemiology and analysis, disease and injury prevention, and public health consultation. Learn more by going to www.nmcphc.med.navy.mil. Follow NMCPHC on social media at https://www.facebook.com/NavyAndMarineCorpsPublicHealthCenter http://twitter.com/nmcphc and https://www.instagram.com/nmcphc/
| Date Taken: | 05.10.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 05.10.2023 10:42 |
| Story ID: | 444435 |
| Location: | PORTSMOUTH, VA, US |
| Web Views: | 416 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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