lhins: bringing it all back home - Registered Nurses' Association of ...

And the nurse sees
a reflection
Reflection. For many of us, the very word conjures
up a variety of images: the seasoned nurse, recognizing
her social and professional status, admiring her
accomplishments, confident in her contributions thus
far; the mid-career nurse, wincing with trepidation,
uncertain whether her efforts conform to a nursing
ideal; and the novice nurse, defiant at a reflection
that causes her to appear insignificant within an
imposing environment.
In many respects, nurses are a reflection of a broad
social milieu, for it is the nurse who must ensure the
imperative of human caring is not subsumed under
resource limitation, technological advancement, and stringent
expectations from a complex health-care system.
For each nurse, the reflection of self may be
warped by many factors beyond our control. Yet, the
continuing advancement of nursing demands an
unflinching view of ourselves – a view that counteracts
prevailing misconceptions of our profession and promotes
nursing as a career in which caring is central.
As the College of Nurses of Ontario (CNO) declares,
each day of nursing practice requires reflection.
Through our disparate roles within the structure of
health care – in the community or hospital setting, or
as instructors in the academic environment – nurses
often serve as luminaries. It is the nurse who is privy to
emerging changes in resource allocation; the nurse
who is able to identify areas of client need that are not
being met; the nurse who is able to sense the air of disillusionment
confronting students whose ideal of nursing
is challenged by the realities of nursing practice.
Reflection is the very thrust of effective nursing,
enabling a review of past actions, and providing the
opportunity to improve future trials, or to re-affirm
the appropriateness of prior responses. Through
reflective practice and peer interaction, nurses are able
to apply the power of collective action to effecting
social and political change, enhancing our capacity to
challenge the status quo which impedes nurses’ ability
to realize their potential.
Reflection. Only through acknowledging the significance
of this aspect of nursing practice can nurses
maintain the imperative of human caring which is fundamental
to our profession.
CARIL SEBASTIAN, B.SC.(UWI), SN(IV), IS A
RYERSON UNIVERSITY NURSING STUDENT WHOSE
FIRST DEGREE WAS IN BIOLOGY. BEFORE
EMBARKING ON STUDIES IN NURSING, SEBASTIAN
WAS A PAN AMERICAN HEALTH ORGANIZATION
(PAHO) PROJECT MANAGER AND RESEARCHER FOR
LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN.
22 July/August 2005
Top: Nikita Kandola created a large double-sided puzzle to
show how the different characteristics and traits of a nurse
fit together.
Middle: Michele Eng describes nursing through a
traditional Japanese poem called a haiku.
Bottom: Steven Mark fashioned three masks to represent
colorectal cancer patients’ experiences during diagnosis,
treatment and remission.