This year, Rwanda Nurses and Midwives Union joined nurses and midwives at Kabusunzu Health Center to celebrate the International Nurses Day 2023. The celebrations were held under the theme “Our Nurses, Our future”, RNMU offered financial support to the health center geared towards procurement of Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) for nurses and midwives working at Kabusunzu Health Center.
Personal protective equipment (PPEs) are equipment worn to minimize exposure to hazards that cause serious workplace injuries and illnesses. These injuries and illnesses may result from contact with chemical, radiological, physical, electrical, mechanical, infected patients or other workplace hazards.
The financial support will be used to procure personal protective equipment (PPEs) like clothing, gloves, face shields, goggles, facemasks, and other equipment to protect nurses and midwives from injury, infection, or illness. When used properly,nurses and midwives will have a barrier to block transmission of infectious materials from blood, body fluids, or respiratory secretions to their skin, mouth, nose, and eyes.
Patients will also be protected from exposure to potentially infectious material. Together with hand washing, use of alcohol-based hand sanitizers, and covering coughs and sneezes, these PPEs will minimizes the spread of infection from one nurses to patients and vice-versa.
A study published in the Journal of Medicine revealed that nurses spend about one-third of their time directly caring for patients, as opposed to the 14% spent by doctors. This data implies that the average nurse spends more than twice as much time in close contact with patients, in turn increasing the likelihood of contracting or spreading an infection. This underlines the reasoning behind RNMU offering PPEs.
At the event RNMU secretary General, Mr. Gerald Rurangwa thanked Nurses and Midwives for their commitment to serve Rwandan despite the difficult conditions they operate in. He emphasized RNMU’s commitment to continue supporting Nurses and Midwives through advocacy, social support and professional development. He encouraged nurses and midwives at Kabusunzu Health Center to always strive for excellence, serve with excellence and promised continued support from RNMU to those that want to undertake further studies and carrying out professional research.
RNMU First Vice President Ms. Edith Lunkuse thanked Nurses and Midwives of Kabusunzu Health Center and Rwanda by extension for their role in saving the lives of Rwandans, she acknowledged the hardships they operate in and pledged RNMU’s continued commitment to continue undertaking advocacy on various issues affecting nurses and midwives, promote research by nurses and midwives, continue offering social support to members in distress and strive to improve the lives of nurses and midwives in Rwanda
While receiving the financial support from RNMU, Ms. Caroline Ikiriza thanked RNMU for the support. She emphasized the importance of PPEs to her colleagues at the health center. She was happy to mention that the number of patient to nurse / midwife infections and vice versa will greatly reduce.
Ms. Ikiriza further thanked RNMU for the continued advocacy and support extended to nurses in Rwanda and called upon nurses and midwives that have not yet joined the Union to seize the opportunity and join so as to enjoy the benefits accrued from RNMU membership.
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