International Nurses Day is celebrated around the world every 12 May, the anniversary of Florence Nightingale's birth. We are writing this at a time when nursing is in the spotlight as never before. Members of the nursing profession globally are providing nursing care in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, which is generating immense challenges to the way that person-centred care is delivered, especially in those settings that have rapidly changed to meet acutely ill patients' needs.
As the world continues to face the threats and challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, nurses have faced these challenges both as global citizens and as part of the global community of nurses. Global citizenship involves a sense of belonging within a broader global community. International Nurses Day 2021 presents a moment for nurses across the world to consider their professional identity and roles in terms of this year's theme ‘Nurses: a voice to lead—a vision for future healthcare’ (International Council of Nurses, 2021). Indeed, prior to International Nurses Day, the University of Salford held an online international student nurses' study day as a preparatory step for future nurses in Australia, Bahrain, the Netherlands, Finland, the UK and USA. The aim was to create a space where student nurses could exchange knowledge, re-connecting after 13 months of disconnection. It aimed to reinforce their value in the global community of nurses, exemplifying their perspectives on the future of nursing beyond 2021.
Student engagement in a study day such as this proves how knowledge is not bound by national borders, rather it is ‘nomadic’ in nature (Saeed et al, 2019), reflecting the ongoing exchange of knowledge between practitioners, patients, educators, researchers, students, organisations and communities. The impact of the use of this knowledge is evident in the lives of these same individuals, organisations and communities.
The COVID-19 pandemic has shown the way in which shared, nomadic knowledge is essential for global health. Nomadic knowledge has been described as bound by a community of practice that can be global in nature, requiring the full attention of those involved and used to master a specific situation or condition of importance, reflecting ‘disruptions and discontinuities in practice as the knowledge is used in diverse ways and different settings’ (Saeed et al, 2019). Nomadic knowledge is also essential as nurses across the world contribute to the leadership of healthcare in communities, hospitals and a wide range of organisations. In acquiring, sharing and implementing this knowledge they will be contributing to the future of patient care and health care. International Nurses Day is just one reminder of the knowledge exchange across the global community of nurses.
As the nursing profession focuses on its global role in leading and contributing to the vision of future healthcare, a global approach to the accompanying knowledge exchange must reflect interconnectivity, inclusivity, collaboration, flexibility and sustainability (Higher Education Academy, 2020):