Selfless service highlighted on Nurses Day
- Faculty Communications
Nurses are the backbone of our health care system, and selfless in their service to patients and our students.
“To be the person who takes on the responsibility of looking after the critically ill patient at such a vulnerable stage of dependence; to become their voice, eyes, ears and existence comes with such great accountability. But [it] equally gives great satisfaction as you know you are maintaining their human dignity and assisting in restoring their health and well-being to its highest potential.”- Irene Kearns, ICU Nurse.
On what is and continues to be a hopeful (and yet at times bleak) fight against diseases and sickness, it takes nurses all over the world to advocate for their patients, make critical decisions and be a companion when they need them the most. As celebrations for International Nurses Day are underway with the 2021 theme 'Nurses: A Voice to Lead – A vision for future healthcare', our reflections on the past and present speak of victory led by many nurses, and sometimes comfort given by the same fighters at the end of many people’s lives.
Nurses are crafting careers as independent practitioners spearheading new specialities in vital area
The Faculty’s Head of the Department of Nursing Education, Professor Shelley Schmollgruber, looks to the future of the nursing profession as one that needs renewal in leadership and the professional regulatory framework to represent the voices of nurses and shape the future of their profession. As populations around the world look for access to healthcare for all, it is worth noting that all patients will – at all stages of their health treatment - be in the care of nurses. This has the potential to create a consequential imbalance within our society. Schmollgruber stresses that there is a looming crisis of the shortage of qualified professional nurses and warns that this will only become worse over the coming decade.
However, nursing has in many aspects been a progressive profession with opportunities for nurses to practice in advanced specialities.
“Nurses are crafting careers as independent practitioners spearheading new specialities in vital areas such as wound care management; oncology and palliative care; primary care; child health and development; nutrition and lactation support and non-clinical fields such as education, healthcare coding and the like,” says Schmollgruber. This expansion of nursing extends to using tools and methods of the era of technology such as medical and data sciences to fasttrack adequate care and build on these advancements to provide efficient treatment systems.
In the end, it is every patient’s desire to have a health care worker that prioritises their needs; a companion when they are at their most vulnerable.
Whilst the Faculty of Health Sciences is proud to contribute to these advancements in nursing education and producing graduates of high professional quality and exemplary ethical standards; the current national and universal health coverage shortfall is still a concern. Nurses are a critical link between medical teams and the patients that they care for.
“[Nurses] have a unique position as they coordinate and lead the holistic care of patients based on the art and science of nursing,” says Schmollgruber. Therefore, prioritising the absorption of professional nursing staff within the universal healthcare network is key in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
As put by Nurse Irene Kearns, “Fulfilling such responsible acts within a fast-paced and high-technological environment where you know [that] your clinical judgement of the critically ill patient’s progress plays a key-role in…assisting in directing the plan of care for the patients – is rewarding in itself,”.
The Faculty of Health Sciences would like to express gratitude and respect to all nurses for their selfless service, and honour its staff members for their contribution to strengthening the integrity of health care through their teachings. Happy International Nurses Day!