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I am a nurse
EDITORIAL
I am a Nurse
Gail Pisarcik Lenehan, RN, EdD, FAAN, Boston, Mass
J Emerg Nurs 2002;28:103. Copyright © 2002 by the Emergency Nurses Association. 0099-1767/2002 $35.00 + 0 18/64/123934 doi:10.1067/men.2002.123934
every school, a viewer can click onto “Find scholarships that match this program.” Links to ENA and other specialty nursing organizations, applications for nursing licensing examinations, and descriptions of schools that offer LPN to RN or RN to MSN programs are also listed. The initiative includes funding for student and faculty scholarships; fundraising campaigns, brochures, posters, and videos for 20,000 high schools; and much more. Of course, retention and support of existing nurses is crucial for nursing’s future, and a J & J spokesperson assured me that will be addressed. In the meantime, aggressive recruitment of new nurses into this wonderful profession of nursing is long overdue. We know all too well what happens when shortages are severe; unfilled nursing positions are replaced with cheaper, less qualified, less capable personnel. The timing is right. Stung by the downturn in the economy and “dot coms,” and enticed by rising salaries and bonuses, students are beginning to respond. One Boston nursing school saw applications rise 40% this year. This amazing campaign, developed in collaboration with national nursing groups, provides nursing with some valuable tools to do something, along with the inspiration to want to. It behooves us all to strengthen its momentum. If each of the almost 30,000 readers of this Journal simply tells one high school junior or one high school guidance counselor about the Web site, the ripple effects can be enormous. I have written a letter to my colleagues at other nursing journals, asking them to prominently feature the campaign and its Web site. I also encourage readers of this Journal to think about writing letters to the editors of publications such as nursing journals, local newspapers, and alumni magazines, alerting others to the campaign and its Web site. The possibilities are exciting and the boost appreciated.
April 2002 28:2
JOURNAL OF EMERGENCY NURSING
During one of the 30-second, primetime TV commercials that began airing during the Olympics, millions of viewers saw the faces and heard the voices of very real nurses, saying: “I deal with life-and-death situations.” “We touch a lot of lives, every day.” “I can’t have a bad day.” “It’s a fight all the way, and for me, I have to win that fight.” “People’s lives are in your hands.” “I’ve seen kindness heal.” “I never get bored.” “I saved a life.” “I know I make a difference.” “This is who I am.” “There is nothing I’d rather be.” At the end of this ad, 5 nurses, one after the other, each echoes, “I am a Nurse,” with a pride and confidence that is profoundly justified and all too seldom articulated. The ads are part of an impressive $20 million campaign by Johnson & Johnson (J & J) to recruit nurses. J & J has, once again, “done the right thing,” and they are definitely doing it well. The ads end with www.discovernursing.com, a Web site offering a look at the world of nursing—salary ranges, available specialties, a glossary of terms like “accredited,” and even a listing that debunks myths about nursing. Site visitors can search for a nursing school locally or nationally, public or private, large or small. Programs offering a diploma, associate degree, or bachelor’s program are all there. Whole curricula are outlined. Local scholarships are listed that a prospective student might never know about otherwise; in fact, beneath the name of
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I am a Nurse
Gail Pisarcik Lenehan, RN, EdD, FAAN, Boston, Mass
J Emerg Nurs 2002;28:103. Copyright © 2002 by the Emergency Nurses Association. 0099-1767/2002 $35.00 + 0 18/64/123934 doi:10.1067/men.2002.123934
every school, a viewer can click onto “Find scholarships that match this program.” Links to ENA and other specialty nursing organizations, applications for nursing licensing examinations, and descriptions of schools that offer LPN to RN or RN to MSN programs are also listed. The initiative includes funding for student and faculty scholarships; fundraising campaigns, brochures, posters, and videos for 20,000 high schools; and much more. Of course, retention and support of existing nurses is crucial for nursing’s future, and a J & J spokesperson assured me that will be addressed. In the meantime, aggressive recruitment of new nurses into this wonderful profession of nursing is long overdue. We know all too well what happens when shortages are severe; unfilled nursing positions are replaced with cheaper, less qualified, less capable personnel. The timing is right. Stung by the downturn in the economy and “dot coms,” and enticed by rising salaries and bonuses, students are beginning to respond. One Boston nursing school saw applications rise 40% this year. This amazing campaign, developed in collaboration with national nursing groups, provides nursing with some valuable tools to do something, along with the inspiration to want to. It behooves us all to strengthen its momentum. If each of the almost 30,000 readers of this Journal simply tells one high school junior or one high school guidance counselor about the Web site, the ripple effects can be enormous. I have written a letter to my colleagues at other nursing journals, asking them to prominently feature the campaign and its Web site. I also encourage readers of this Journal to think about writing letters to the editors of publications such as nursing journals, local newspapers, and alumni magazines, alerting others to the campaign and its Web site. The possibilities are exciting and the boost appreciated.
April 2002 28:2
JOURNAL OF EMERGENCY NURSING
During one of the 30-second, primetime TV commercials that began airing during the Olympics, millions of viewers saw the faces and heard the voices of very real nurses, saying: “I deal with life-and-death situations.” “We touch a lot of lives, every day.” “I can’t have a bad day.” “It’s a fight all the way, and for me, I have to win that fight.” “People’s lives are in your hands.” “I’ve seen kindness heal.” “I never get bored.” “I saved a life.” “I know I make a difference.” “This is who I am.” “There is nothing I’d rather be.” At the end of this ad, 5 nurses, one after the other, each echoes, “I am a Nurse,” with a pride and confidence that is profoundly justified and all too seldom articulated. The ads are part of an impressive $20 million campaign by Johnson & Johnson (J & J) to recruit nurses. J & J has, once again, “done the right thing,” and they are definitely doing it well. The ads end with www.discovernursing.com, a Web site offering a look at the world of nursing—salary ranges, available specialties, a glossary of terms like “accredited,” and even a listing that debunks myths about nursing. Site visitors can search for a nursing school locally or nationally, public or private, large or small. Programs offering a diploma, associate degree, or bachelor’s program are all there. Whole curricula are outlined. Local scholarships are listed that a prospective student might never know about otherwise; in fact, beneath the name of
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