Welcome to the Royal palace and the Bernadotte Library!

It is an honour to meet you at last, winners – or, as I like to say, ambassadors of the Queen Silvia Nursing Award.

Just like so many others, I have a deep respect for the nursing profession. All of us here today, at some point in our lives, have experienced the care, attention and skill that you and your colleagues provide. When we have been at our most vulnerable, you have been there, demonstrating your professional competences through lifesaving work.

Over a number of years, I have seen the incredible dedication and commitment of nurses. When my mother was diagnosed with dementia, the doctor informed us there was no cure for the disease. Two years ago, my dear brother passed away in the same disease.

As many of you know, losing a loved one to dementia is difficult. It is painful. However, my family has been lucky to have the support from wonderful nurses. With their knowledge, their imagination and their great warmth, they carried us through.

As a daughter, sister, mother, I am eternally grateful to you and your profession. You are the very infrastructure of our global health, welfare and medical systems. From Sao Paolo to Vilnius, from the emergency room to long-term care facilities during the COVID19 pandemic, you continue to give the very best of yourself and your skills.

There is a saying that “knowledge comes from learning, but wisdom comes from living”. I believe that this is applicable to you, Queen Silvia Nursing Award ambassadors, here today:

You have put in the long hours and sleepless nights to pass your learning qualifications and exams. You have seen solutions when others could not. And you have all demonstrated the wisdom to understand, integrate and take action based on your learning and observations.

And this is precisely why the Queen Silvia Nursing Award celebrates you, our collective hope for the future of nursing.

Dear laureates! My warmest congratulations on your achievement.
Be proud, like I am proud of you. And believe in yourselves, like I believe in you.

I wish you the best of luck with your future in nursing. And now, I look forward to learning more about your ideas!