May 12 marks International Nurses Day under the theme of Nursing the World to Health. This celebration comes during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Nurses, amongst many healthcare professionals, have been in the frontline of COVID-19 as essential workers.
We are thus all called on to play our part in protecting our nurses and healthcare workers. And this International Nurses Day, it is the best way we can thank them for all that they are giving up for us #IND2020 #VoicesToLead pic.twitter.com/CnURn3TuGn
— Dr Zweli Mkhize (@DrZweliMkhize) May 12, 2020
SABC News has outlined 10 recommendations for nurses to follow to keep safe during COVID-19 and while they are nursing COVID-19 infected patients.
The recommendations outlined are based on those of official sources, including the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO).
- Perform hand hygiene
- Clean surfaces regularly with disinfectant
- Adequate ventilation in rooms
- Change gloves when torn or heavily contaminated
- Wear fitted N95 respirator (medical mask)
- Use a face shield or medical mask and goggles
- Wash hands before putting on personal protective equipment (PPE)
- Remove PPE correctly
- Wash hands immediately after removing all PPE
- Proper patient placement
