Last month the United Kingdom Royal Mint announced that an image of Lord Kitchener, wartime general, would appear on a series of \u00a32 coins marking the outbreak of World War One in 1914.\u00a0 Social media commentaries highlighted that Lord Kitcheners\u2019 famous army recruitment slogan \u2018your country needs you\u2019 glorified war, leading to alternative suggestions such as nurse Edith Cavell.\u00a0 Initiated by a local councillor, and subsequently embraced by the nursing media, a petition for the image of Edith Cavell to be honoured ensued. \u00a030,000 people signed the online petition in the first week.\u00a0 If your history is a bit shaky, Edith Cavell was a British nurse who treated allied soldiers of all nationalities and assisted their escape from German-occupied Belgium during World War One.\u00a0 In August 1915, she was arrested and charged with assisting allied soldiers escape to neutral Holland, tried by a court-martial, sentenced to death and executed.\u00a0 Edith Cavell represents all nurses who provided care during World War One, who though dedication and courage were committed to saving human life.\u00a0 Other inspirational nurses have been similarly honoured; in 2012 the Royal Australian Mint launched a series of coins as a tribute to Australian Services nurses who play important roles during times of war, conflict and peacekeeping.<\/p>\n
Nurses provide healthcare worldwide in a range of contexts, cultures, organisations and settings, and often remain largely invisible; yet to those who they support and care for, and colleagues they work with, are inspirational. \u00a0Every nurse will have been inspired by another nurse they admire. Many colleagues have inspired me; as a student nurse, I have clear memories of the ward sister on my first placement because of her depth of knowledge, vision in integrating evidence into practice (well before evidence-based nursing was taught) and her enthusiasm for teaching students. As a newly qualified children\u2019s nurse working on a busy surgical ward caring for children undergoing complex surgery, it was a senior staff nurse that inspired me; she was caring and compassionate and had all the qualities I admired. I was in awe of her ability to make time for everyone despite the competing demands of a busy ward, junior staff and students, but it was the way she would engage with the child and family that most impressed. She had an ability to instil confidence and ensure the child and family felt valued and included in care decisions. What these nurses had in common was that they would not have perceived themselves as inspirational, perhaps best reflected by Samuel Butler the 17th-century poet; \u2018Inspiration is never genuine if it is known as inspiration at the time. True inspiration always steals on a person; its importance not being fully recognised for some time\u2019, from the Note-Books of Samuel Butler (1912).<\/p>\n
Share your thoughts and comments:\u00a0\u00a0 What makes nurses inspirational?\u00a0 Who has influences you throughout your career?<\/p>\n
Jo Smith, Senior Lecturer Children\u2019s Nursing, University of Huddersfield, Associate Editor EBN<\/p>\n
Join in the blog discussion\u00a0@EBNursingBMJ\u00a0 Tweet me @josmith175<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Last month the United Kingdom Royal Mint announced that an image of Lord Kitchener, wartime general, would appear on a series of \u00a32 coins marking the outbreak of World War One in 1914.\u00a0 Social media commentaries highlighted that Lord Kitcheners\u2019 famous army recruitment slogan \u2018your country needs you\u2019 glorified war, leading to alternative suggestions such […]<\/p>\n