International Nursing Congress 2018

• Placing an apparent record in the history of Nursing Profession in Sri Lanka the “International Nursing Congress 2018” organized by the Department of Nursing, Faculty of Allied Health Sciences, University of Peradeniya was held on 6^th and 7^th, April 2018 at the Oak Ray Regency Hotel, Kandy. The congress was partnered by Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, USA and Department of Nursing Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Malaysia.

  This foundational congress was based on the judicious theme for present and future health care industry: Exploring Nurses Role towards better Health Care, which featured a total of 300 local and International delegates. Satisfactorily this academic event afforded a productive forum to disseminate innovative research findings in relation to Nursing and other health care disciplines through oral and poster presentations carried out by about 70 local and international researchers.

  The grace of the entire event was affirmed by the inauguration ceremony of the congress with the presence of the Chief Guest Prof. Khaijah Lim Abdullah, Head, Department of Nursing Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Malaysia. She is famed as “Malaysia’s own Florence Nightingale” and her key note speech on “Clinical Leadership in Nursing” was powerful enough to make the audience inspired of delivering quality health care in the future. The augmented development of the Department of Nursing was happily brought to the attention of the assembly by the Vice Chancellor of University of Peradeniya, Prof Upul B. Dissanayake. Moreover, the Deputy Vice Chancellor and the Deans of fellow faculties of University of Peradeniya, Director Nursing – Public Health Services, Directors and Nursing Staff of Teaching Hospitals, Academic staff members and a wider range of other congress delegates from local and international institutes took part at the inauguration ceremony.

  To Achieve one of its own aims: networking with other health care professionals, the welcome dinner of the congress was arranged at the Oak Ray Regency Hotel on the same day of the congress which provided a great occasion to the delegates to have a pleasurable evening. The second day of the congress had been dedicated to the Post Congress Workshop on “Qualitative Research Methodology for Health Care Professionals” which was devotedly facilitated by Prof Khatijah Lim Abdullah, as she is an experienced and eminent academic in the field of Qualitative Researches. About 70 participants registered for this workshop which included lectures, discussions and interactive sessions and the positive feedbacks rendered at the end, meant that the participants were confident and satisfactory of what they learnt during the workshop

  The International Nursing Congress 2018 was mainly sponsored by the National Science Foundation, International Research Centre of University of Peradeniya, KATSU International University and ICBT, Kandy Campus. Peoples Bank- Peradeniya Branch, Lanka Hospital, Asiri Central Hospital and the Bank of Ceylon- Peradeniya Branch also extended their generous contribution to make the event a success.

  The unexpected number of participants and abstract submissions, the high quality research presentations and the dynamic academic and health care community enthusiastically ultimately contributed to the great success of the event. The boundless effort exerted by the whole staff of the Department of Nursing, towards this academic endeavor evidently have resulted a successful achievement and our sincere gratitude goes to all the collaborators who contributed us more or less behalf of this accomplishment