Nurses Week 2027: Dates, Themes, Ideas and Gifts

Nurses Week is the annual US celebration of nursing, held every year from May 6 to May 12. The American Nurses Association, the professional group that represents the country’s registered nurses (RNs), leads it and announces a theme each spring. Hospitals, clinics, schools and nursing homes use the week to say thank you with meals, awards, small gifts and public recognition.

That thanks reaches a big group. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the country had about 3,465,400 registered nurse jobs in 2025. Meanwhile, Gallup’s December 2025 poll found that 75% of Americans rate nurses “very high” or “high” for honesty and ethics. So this guide covers the 2027 dates, where the week came from, the themes, and practical ideas, gifts and messages for managers, coworkers and families.

When Is National Nurses Week 2027?

The 2027 observance starts on Thursday, May 6, and ends on Wednesday, May 12. The dates never move, because the ANA made May 6–12 the permanent window in 1993, starting with the 1994 observance.

In addition, the ANA turned the whole of May into National Nurses Month in 2020, during the pandemic. As a result, many employers now spread events across the month. However, the core week of May 6–12 is still the main focus for most hospitals and units.

Day	2027 date	Who it honors
National Nurses Month	May 1–31 (Saturday to Monday)	All nurses, across the whole month
National Nurses Day (RN Recognition Day)	Thursday, May 6	Registered nurses; opens the week
National Student Nurses Day	Saturday, May 8	Nursing students
National School Nurse Day	Wednesday, May 12	School nurses (the Wednesday of the week)
International Nurses Day	Wednesday, May 12	Nurses worldwide, on Florence Nightingale’s birthday

How do the 2026 and 2027 dates compare?

In 2026, the week ran Wednesday, May 6, to Tuesday, May 12. In 2027, it runs Thursday, May 6, to Wednesday, May 12. Because the dates stay fixed, the only thing that changes is the weekday, so plan around weekends: in 2027, Student Nurses Day lands on a Saturday.

Why Is It in May? A Short History

The week is in May because it ends on May 12, the birthday of Florence Nightingale, the British nurse widely seen as the founder of modern nursing. The US path to a full week, however, took about 40 years.

Year	Milestone
1953	Dorothy Sutherland of the US Department of Health, Education and Welfare proposes a “Nurse Day” to President Eisenhower; it is never proclaimed.
1954	The first National Nurse Week runs October 11–16, marking 100 years since Nightingale’s mission to Crimea.
1974	The International Council of Nurses names May 12 International Nurse Day.
1978	New Jersey Governor Brendan Byrne declares May 6 “Nurses Day.”
1982	The ANA recognizes May 6 as National Nurses Day, and President Reagan proclaims National Recognition Day for Nurses.
1990	The ANA expands the day into a week, May 6–12, first held in 1991.
1993	The ANA makes May 6–12 the permanent dates, starting in 1994.
1997	The ANA names May 8 National Student Nurses Day.
2020	The ANA expands the week into National Nurses Month for all of May.

Who was Florence Nightingale?

Florence Nightingale was a British nursing reformer born on May 12, 1820, in Florence, Italy. According to the Science Museum Group, she led 38 nurses to military hospitals at Scutari during the Crimean War, arriving in November 1854. There, her night rounds earned her the name “Lady with the Lamp.”

Later, in 1860, she founded the Nightingale Training School at St Thomas’ Hospital in London, the first professional school of its kind. She also wrote Notes on Nursing, among more than 200 books and reports, and she died in London in 1910, aged 90.

ANA and ICN Themes: 2026 and 2027

As of October 2026, the ANA has not announced its 2027 theme. For 2026, the ANA’s 2026 event page used “The Power of Nurses” with the hashtag #ThePowerOfNurses, and it tied the week to the ANA’s 130th anniversary.

In addition, the ANA’s 2026 program offered a free digital toolkit with posters, thank-you cards and certificates, plus webinars and a campaign to light up local landmarks (#NursesLightUpTheSky). So, if you lead a unit, check the ANA site early in 2027 for the new kit.

ANA weekly focus ideas for Nurses Month

When the ANA first stretched the week into a month in 2020, it gave each week its own focus. Many hospitals still use the same four-part plan to structure May:

Week of May	Focus	Easy activity
Week 1	Self-care	Chair massages, a quiet room, healthy snacks
Week 2 (includes May 6–12)	Recognition	Awards, thank-you notes, a catered meal
Week 3	Professional development	Paid CE courses, certification support
Week 4	Community engagement	Health fair, volunteer day, school visit

What Is International Nurses Day?

International Nurses Day is the global nursing day on May 12, run by the International Council of Nurses (ICN), a federation of national nursing associations based in Geneva. In the US, it doubles as the last day of the US week.

Each year, the ICN also publishes a theme and a report. The 2027 theme is not out yet. For reference, recent ICN themes are listed below.

Year	International Nurses Day theme
2023	Our Nurses. Our Future.
2024	Our Nurses. Our Future. The economic power of care.
2025	Our Nurses. Our Future. Caring for nurses strengthens economies.
2026	Our Nurses. Our Future. Empowered Nurses Save Lives.
2027	To be announced (the 2026 theme was revealed on February 5, 2026)

Also note that outside the US, many readers in the UK, Canada and Australia search for International Nurses Day rather than the US week, so check your local nursing body for its own plans.

Nurses Week Ideas for Hospitals, Managers and Units

The best Nurses Week ideas give nurses something they can use on shift: food that reaches every shift, real time off the floor, and specific praise. Above all, plan for nights and weekends, since those nurses often miss daytime events.

Food ideas for Nurses Week on a budget

• Breakfast cart for nights: roll it out at 5 a.m. so night shift gets something first.
• Potluck with a theme: taco bar, soup and salad, or a dessert contest.
• Snack “survival kit” station: protein bars, nuts, mints and electrolyte packets.
• Coffee truck or upgraded coffee: one of the most requested perks on most units.
• Cookie or cupcake day: order a local bakery’s “thank you, nurses” cake for each break room.

Recognition and award ideas

• Nurse superlatives: “Calmest in a code,” “Best preceptor,” “IV wizard.”
• Patient thank-you board: post notes from patients and families.
• DAISY-style nominations: let coworkers and patients nominate a nurse.
• Leader rounding with handwritten cards: name one specific thing each nurse did.
• Light it blue: join the ANA landmark campaign with your hospital building.

Games, spirit week and unit activities

Fun events work best when they take five minutes. For example, run nursing bingo, a scavenger hunt, a photo booth, or a dress-up spirit week (scrub-cap day, sports-jersey day, decade day). Then, for remote or travel nurses, add an online gift card or a virtual trivia game.

Ideas that matter more than swag

Gifts are nice; however, nurses consistently value staffing, breaks and growth. So consider paid continuing education, certification exam vouchers, protected break coverage during the week, and a real conversation about workload. In short, a pizza party lands better when it comes with an extra float nurse.

Best Nurses Week Gifts (Under $10 to Splurge)

Good Nurses Week gifts are practical items nurses use on every shift, such as a leak-proof tumbler, compression socks or a quality badge reel. Personal touches, like a handwritten note, add more value than price. Below are tested categories; follow the links to compare current options.

Budget	Gift idea	Best for
Under $5	Badge reel, lip balm, candy bag, thank-you card	Whole units, bulk gifts
Under $10	Hand cream, socks, pen set, snack kit	Coworkers, staff gifts
$10–$30	Insulated tumbler, lunch bag, compression socks	Managers, close coworkers
$50+	Stethoscope, nursing shoes, spa gift card	Spouse, partner, new graduate

Thank-You Messages and Quotes for Nurses

In short, a good happy nurses week message is brief, specific and sincere. Name one thing the nurse did, and then thank them for it. So here are original messages you can copy or adapt.

For coworkers and staff

• Thanks for always having my back on a hard shift.
• Because of you, this unit gets better every single day. Thank you to an amazing team.
• Thank you for the calm you bring to the chaos. We see it, and we appreciate it.
• To our night shift: your work keeps everything running while the rest of us sleep. Thank you.

From patients and families

• Thank you for the care, patience and kindness you showed my family. We will never forget it.
• You made a scary week feel manageable. Thank you.

Short captions for social media

• Happy Nurses Week to the heart of health care.
• Celebrating the nurses who show up for every shift.
• Here’s to the nurses, today and every day.

Also, skip the generic quote graphics if you can. In fact, a single sentence that names a real moment, such as a tough admission or a patient who went home, lands better than any famous line.

How Can You Celebrate if You Are Not a Manager?

Anyone can celebrate with a thank-you note, a small treat, or a public shout-out. For instance, families of patients can mail a card to the unit, and friends can cover a chore for a nurse working extra shifts.

• Write a specific note: mention the nurse by name and say what they did.
• Tell their manager: many hospitals have formal nomination forms.
• Check the ANA deals list: the ANA and many retailers post nurse discounts each May.
• Support a nursing charity: for example, the American Nurses Foundation.
• Share on social media: use the year’s official hashtag once the ANA announces it.

Finally, if a nurse in your life works in a school, mark National School Nurse Day. According to the National Association of School Nurses, the day has honored school nurses since 1972.

Frequently Asked Questions