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The Nursing Shortage: Refocusing on the Mission
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LETTERS
The Nursing Shortage: Refocusing on the Mission
I
t is no news that the nursing shortage is a crisis. What is a hot topic, however, is how to resolve the shortage through recruitment efforts. But at what cost? Not everyone can be a nurse! Although hundreds are laid off from various fields, do they have what it takes to become nurses? For most of us, nursing is inborn—from birth we’ve carried the trait of nurturing, the desire to care for and protect others. Nursing still has a secret weapon, and while recruitment is essential for the profession to continue, there must be a revitalization of the existing workforce to sustain us during the gap. Thousands of nurses with 10, 15, or 20 years of experience still have 10 or 15 good years left to give. We “incumbents” bring much to the table: wisdom, knowledge, and a sixth sense that is something you can’t put your hand on or validate with research. We bring the excitement, desire, and focus of a lifetime caregiver. We must stir up this gift and rekindle the flame. A speaker recently said, “To be burnt out means you would have had to at one time or another have been lit.” We must demonstrate pride, accountability, and responsibility for the profession. We must become walking advertisements of how great and rewarding this profession of nursing really is. We have to flaunt the benefits of nursing as a career. Refocusing on this mission gives us an opportunity to reevaluate our assets. We must make a declaration to the health care community and the general public that nursing can be counted on. Our love of nursing is still deep, although it may be hidden behind disappointments, too many goodbyes, exhaustion, and long hours. The love of nursing can be found in our daily success stories, our memories of victories, and in our agonies of defeat. Refocusing on the mission will renew our love for
636 JOGNN
nursing, allow us to rededicate ourselves to the profession, and inspire us as we recruit new nurses for the future. Olinda P. Johnson, RNC, MS, CNS Harris County Hospital District Houston, TX
Evidence-Based Practice
Ievidence-based thoroughly enjoyed the Clinical Issues series on practice (September/October 2002 JOGNN). As a maternity nursing teacher, I especially enjoyed the article on the three infant care interventions (“Three Infant Care Interventions: Reconsidering the Evidence,” by Jennifer M. Medves, RN, PhD). Even though I have been teaching for many years, write and edit textbooks, and study evidencebased practice, I learned several new things. For example, I have never questioned the practice of instilling medication into the eyes of babies born by cesarean when membranes are intact, and I didn’t know that breastfed babies need vitamin K, whereas bottle-fed babies receive adequate amounts of vitamin K in the formula. A practice I would like to see studied is that of placing a bulb syringe in every newborn’s bassinet and teaching parents how to suction the infant. I spent 3 months in a maternity hospital in Edinburgh, where they do not place bulb syringes in bassinets. When I asked where the bulb syringes were, the midwife asked me what they were needed for. To use in case the baby is choking, I responded. The midwife looked at me and said, “These are normal babies, they can handle their own secretions!” And they did. Shannon E. Perry, RN, PhD, CNS, FAAN San Jose, CA
Volume 31, Number 6
LETTERS
The Nursing Shortage: Refocusing on the Mission
I
t is no news that the nursing shortage is a crisis. What is a hot topic, however, is how to resolve the shortage through recruitment efforts. But at what cost? Not everyone can be a nurse! Although hundreds are laid off from various fields, do they have what it takes to become nurses? For most of us, nursing is inborn—from birth we’ve carried the trait of nurturing, the desire to care for and protect others. Nursing still has a secret weapon, and while recruitment is essential for the profession to continue, there must be a revitalization of the existing workforce to sustain us during the gap. Thousands of nurses with 10, 15, or 20 years of experience still have 10 or 15 good years left to give. We “incumbents” bring much to the table: wisdom, knowledge, and a sixth sense that is something you can’t put your hand on or validate with research. We bring the excitement, desire, and focus of a lifetime caregiver. We must stir up this gift and rekindle the flame. A speaker recently said, “To be burnt out means you would have had to at one time or another have been lit.” We must demonstrate pride, accountability, and responsibility for the profession. We must become walking advertisements of how great and rewarding this profession of nursing really is. We have to flaunt the benefits of nursing as a career. Refocusing on this mission gives us an opportunity to reevaluate our assets. We must make a declaration to the health care community and the general public that nursing can be counted on. Our love of nursing is still deep, although it may be hidden behind disappointments, too many goodbyes, exhaustion, and long hours. The love of nursing can be found in our daily success stories, our memories of victories, and in our agonies of defeat. Refocusing on the mission will renew our love for
636 JOGNN
nursing, allow us to rededicate ourselves to the profession, and inspire us as we recruit new nurses for the future. Olinda P. Johnson, RNC, MS, CNS Harris County Hospital District Houston, TX
Evidence-Based Practice
Ievidence-based thoroughly enjoyed the Clinical Issues series on practice (September/October 2002 JOGNN). As a maternity nursing teacher, I especially enjoyed the article on the three infant care interventions (“Three Infant Care Interventions: Reconsidering the Evidence,” by Jennifer M. Medves, RN, PhD). Even though I have been teaching for many years, write and edit textbooks, and study evidencebased practice, I learned several new things. For example, I have never questioned the practice of instilling medication into the eyes of babies born by cesarean when membranes are intact, and I didn’t know that breastfed babies need vitamin K, whereas bottle-fed babies receive adequate amounts of vitamin K in the formula. A practice I would like to see studied is that of placing a bulb syringe in every newborn’s bassinet and teaching parents how to suction the infant. I spent 3 months in a maternity hospital in Edinburgh, where they do not place bulb syringes in bassinets. When I asked where the bulb syringes were, the midwife asked me what they were needed for. To use in case the baby is choking, I responded. The midwife looked at me and said, “These are normal babies, they can handle their own secretions!” And they did. Shannon E. Perry, RN, PhD, CNS, FAAN San Jose, CA
Volume 31, Number 6