Pulse magazine - Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing

– to further patient safety, knowledge translationand quality improvement.Part of the proceeds from the hospital’s 2011Angel Ball Gala has also been applied to the newchair. “Since 2005, nursing at SMH has had a strategicfocus on cultivating a culture of discovery,”says Ella Ferris, SMH’s chief nursing executive.“Since that time, nurses have demonstrated a commitmentto implementing evidence-based practiceby translating knowledge to action and advancinginnovations in safe care to achieve quality outcomesfor patients through nursing research. TheSt. Michael’s Hospital Volunteer Association Chairin Nursing Research will align with the hospital’spriority to achieve excellence in quality patientcare.”It will also align with Bloomberg Nursing’s commitmentto international leadership in researchand education. A committee is now searchingglobally for a scholar to fulfil the chair’s mandate.The chair will be cross-appointed to BloombergNursing, so the world-renowned scholar will be ourstudents’ new prof.ENCOURAGING THE STUDYOF GERONTOLOGYThe new Baycrest Ben and Hilda Katz Chair inGerontological Nursing Research is a joint chairwith U of T. Again, the search is international, andthis chair will not only teach classes but provideleadership for the gerontological content of ourcurriculum.The search committee is looking for a renownedscientist in the care of older adults, especiallythose with age-associated brain dysfunction. Butthey’re looking for more. The candidate must alsobe a talented educator with the capacity to inspirestudents to pursue research and clinical careers ingerontological nursing.“It is fantastic to establish a nurse scholar role ingerontology nursing,” says assistant professorKarima Velji, MSc 9T7, PhD 0T6,Baycrest’s chief operating officer andchief nursing executive. “This scholarwill push the boundaries of knowledgecreation and knowledge applicationin the field of aging; and the developmentof education curricula that willprepare practitioners to work withthe aging population.”øFOREVER REMEMBEREDThe Clare Scanlan Scholarship honours a much loved motherAt Bloomberg Nursing’s annual awardsceremony, most of the front row is filledwith members of the Scanlan family.When Clare Scanlan, RN, died suddenlyin 2003, her husband, Bernard, andtheir eight children chose to honour hermemory by establishing a BloombergNursing scholarship in her name.“The Clare Scanlan Scholarship is alegacy to my mom,” says Tom Scanlan,one of Clare’s five sons. “It’s importantthat our family has an occasion to talkabout our mom. Every fall at the awardsceremony, she’s in the spotlight. It’s acelebration of her life.”In 1945, Clare graduated from thenursing program at Hotel Dieu Hospital inKingston. Eventually, Bernard, Clare andtheir ever-increasing number of childrenmoved to Scarborough where Clare workedthe evening shift at East General Hospitaland later at Providence Villa. “Before mymom left for work, she would leave us littlenotes to tell us things like, ‘Turn off thestove,’” recalls Tom. “When Mom got homefrom work at 11, she’d get out the crackersand cheese, and talk to us kids.”“In the morning, if you wanted totalk to Mom or you just needed a hug,you could crawl into bed with her,”remembers Rosemarie McClean, Clare’ssecond-youngest daughter.It was Rosemarie who came up withthe idea of honouring their mother’smemory through a scholarship. “I thoughtof the linkage to the Faculty of Nursingbecause Mom was so proud of beinga nurse. Also, she was a big believer ineducation,” says Rosemarie. The familyendowed the scholarship, which means itwill be awarded every year for all of time.“The scholarship is based as much onneed as academic prowess,” adds Tom,“but it was the need that resonated withour family. It’s something that matchedour mom’s generous spirit.”This year’s recipient is CarolineWang from the Class of 1T2. “TheScanlan Award lightened my financialburden,” says Wang. “It helped to payfor textbooks, which can be very costly,even the used ones.” Wang’s dream isto become a paediatric nurse. After twoyears of clinical experience, she hopes toreturnto Bloomberg Nursingfor her master’s and become an NP-Paediatrics.For the Scanlan family, part of the joyof the scholarship comes from meeting therecipient at the annual awards ceremony. “Iknow my mother would have been thrilledwith every single recipient,” says Rosemarie.The occasion also offers the Scanlans theopportunity to tell the student about thewoman who the scholarship honours.“Our mom embodied the spirit ofwhat a great nurse should be,” says Tom.“But when we were growing up it didn’treally matter what she worked at, we justknew she was a wonderful mother.”N o 15