OBSERVANCE. Today, May 12, is International Nurses Day, a much deserved day of recognition of nurses of all kinds.

During folks’ most vulnerable moments, nurses are the backbone of the healthcare sector in a hospital, urgent care or a doctor’s office experience. A doctor’s most trusted ally, nurses gather patient information and prep stations and supplies.

Florence Nightingale, a nursing pioneer, instituted several hygiene and sanitation procedures, including the use of the nurse’s cap, as part of the standard nursing uniform. To share her knowledge in the nursing field, in 1870, Nightingale established the first secular nursing school at Saint Thomas’ Hospital in London, UK — as the first secular nursing school in the world, it is now recognized as part of the King’s College London.

International Nurses Day was established in 1974, shortly after the opening of London’s St. Thomas’ Hospital — in order to commemorate Nightingale’s birthday.

International Nursing Day established the first-ever nursing manual in 1859.

To honor and recognize the sacrifices nurses make on a daily basis, each day of the year, use this day to thank them for all the hard work they do.

Caring for someone has changed over time. Official education and training for nursing has only been available for a few centuries. Only a wet nurse and a midwife performed nursing tasks at first. It wasn’t until the 16th Century that women were allowed to practice the medical arts, without being considered witches. The word nurse came to be defined as someone who looks after the sick, as it is now.