Nursing & Healthcare News
Talking With Pamela Cipriano of the ICN
International Council of Nurses president warns of global USAID crisis
We talked to Pamela Cipriano, RN, Ph.D., NEA-BC, FAAN, president of the International Council of Nursing, about one of the biggest challenges now facing global nursing: the recent, sudden dismantling of USAID funding.
Can you give readers a brief rundown of the situation?
Although the U.S. spends only around 1 percent of the federal budget on foreign aid, this represents more than 40 percent of all humanitarian aid worldwide.
USAID has been instrumental in addressing poverty, hunger, and infant and maternal mortality around the world, with programs ranging from malaria prevention to childhood vaccination.
Now, it appears that 83 percent of those programs are to be cut.
What is the immediate impact on nurses around the world?
ICN has received reports from countries across Africa, detailing the devastating consequences for healthcare delivery and nursing practice. Some examples include:
- Withdrawal of funding for family health services in Somaliland and South Sudan, including midwives who deliver babies and provide prenatal and postpartum care.
- Drastic curtailment of HIV/AIDS services in Nigeria, Malawi, and other countries — children with HIV are now dying without medication previously funded by USAID programs.
- Thousands of nurses laid off across dozens of projects worldwide, and nursing leadership initiatives terminated.
What can American nurses do to help?
ICN is appealing to the U.S. to restore the moral integrity of its humanitarian commitments and reverse the extreme nature of the funding withdrawal. These cuts do not serve the interests of the American people — diseases do not stop at geographic boundaries!
Nurses in the U.S. can advocate by contacting their elected officials to speak up about the restoration of aid. Addressing humanitarian issues must come first, regardless of party and politics.
Readers can learn more about the International Council of Nurses, a federation of more than 130 nurses associations worldwide, at our website, www.icn.ch.
Aaron Severson is the associate editor of Working Nurse.
In this Article: Global Nursing
