The frontline of immunisation: celebrating nurses and midwives

Nurses and midwives are central to immunisation education and service delivery in Australia and globally. 

Each year, the month of May has two days of international awareness to acknowledge and celebrate the work of midwives and nurses. International Day of the Midwife was celebrated on Tuesday 5 May, with International Day of the Nurse celebrated on Tuesday 12 May. The year 2020 was also designated  as “International Year of the Nurse and Midwife” by the World Health Organization to acknowledge the vital role midwives and nurses play in health promotion, disease prevention and delivery of care in all settings. 

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the role of midwives and nurses is more prominent than ever not only as frontline workers but also as they continue to provide essential health services such as the delivery of routine vaccinations.

At NCIRS, we acknowledge the work of all midwives and nurses involved in the delivery of immunisation services in Australia and globally. We would also like to acknowledge our passionate nurses (both past and present) who are involved in diverse work at NCIRS, some of which includes:

• providing specialised immunisation care and advice to clinicians and families through immunisation advice lines and a specialist immunisation clinic
• undertaking active hospital-based surveillance of vaccine preventable diseases and adverse events following immunisation through the Paediatric Active Enhanced Disease Surveillance (PAEDS) network
• providing leadership in and coordination of vaccine-related clinical research to address gaps in knowledge to inform Australia’s immunisation policy
• supporting nurses in primary care settings on all aspects of immunisation programs in Australia through the Primary Health Networks (PHN) Immunisation Support Program.

Click here to learn more about the International Year of the Nurse and Midwife and how you can get involved and support midwives and nurses.