Today is International Nurse's Day celebration.The world nursing federation, in collaboration with local nurses associations, commemorate this important day each year. The theme for this year's celebration is:  "Delivering Quality, Serving Communities: Nurses Leading Primary Health Care".

Dr Tamsir Mbowe , director of health services, who also doubles as the director general of the Presidential medical treatment programme, who delivered a paper on the commemoration, said the occasion was meant for every midwife to think about the many others in the profession, making new contacts within and outside the profession as well as to widen the knowledge of what midwives do for the world.

Dr Tamsir Mbowe  added that the aim of the day was to celebrate midwifery and to bring awareness of the importance of midwives' work to as many people as possible. "This year, the focus of the celebration is on 'Healthy Families: the key to the future'.

Midwives help to build healthy families". Midwifery care for women and their babies is an investment that promotes healthy growth and well being for the present and future generations of our countries.  Midwives' commitment to families, within a functioning health system and supportive environment is also a core element of Primary Health care.

According to Dr Mbowe, the world is challenged by the paucity of midwives especially in the rural areas, among others, to effectively reduce maternal, newborn and child morbidity and mortality, to which The Gambia is no exception.

Dr Tamsir Mbowe said the Gambian leader, President Yahya Jammeh,  has as high on his priority making health care accessible and affordable to all who live in The Gambia. "This is reflected in the building of new health care facilities and the training of more health workers: doctors, nurses and midwives, public health officers and community workers.The Gambia government will do all it can to improve general working conditions, with incentives, for health workers".

This year, the World Health Organization (WHO) marks 60 years of service to humanity and 60 years of affiliation with International Council of Nurses. It also marks 30 years since the goal of universal access to health services through primary health care, as enshrined by WHO and Member States in the declaration of Alma-Ata, which highlighted the "gross inequality in the health status of the people particularly between developed and developing countries.

"In 2008  primary health care is again high on the global health agenda.  The International Council of Nurses is celebrating nursing's leadership and advocating for greater nursing involvement in Primary Health Care, the key strategy to achieving universal access and better health for the world's people.

What have we learned?

When we embraced Primary Health Care (PHC) in 1978, we saw it as the optimal route for improving health and addressing the enormous challenges facing health care systems. AS we plan ahead, it is useful to take stock of and learn from our successes and failures. Communities should be empowered, to enable them to take responsibility for their health care. All  stakeholders in health care should commit their efforts towards the delivery of quality care and serving their respective communities".