This year’s International Nurses Day, May 12, coincides with the bicentenary of Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing. The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the International Council of Nurses have designated 2020 the International Year of the Nurse and the Midwife.

Luong Ngoc Khue, Director of the Health Ministry’s Department for Management of Medical Examination and Treatment, said the quality of medical treatment and care in Vietnam has been remarkably improved by adopting new care models and standardizing nursing techniques. Khue praised nurses and midwives’ coordination with other medical workers in the fight against COVID-19.

At the ceremony, Kidong Park, WHO’s Representative in Vietnam, recommended that Vietnam invest more in the education and empowerment of nurses and midwives. He promised that the WHO will support Vietnam in human resource training.