Dear Colleagues:

Karen Morin

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the death of Florence Nightingale. What a perfect opportunity to reflect on the contributions the profession of nursing has made to the health of those for whom they care! It’s also a time to celebrate all that nurses do as they care for patients, investigate issues germane to the health of the people in their communities and in the world, and exert influence at the policy level to bring about needed changes.

We have much to celebrate. Global standards for initial professional nursing and midwifery education have been developed, and nurses have key roles in policy discussions. These accomplishments reflect the efforts and determination of nurse leaders to make a difference within their spheres of influence.

In the United States, the National Institute of Nursing Research will celebrate its 25th anniversary in September with its 2010 Symposium, and a series of activities are planned for 2011. Our colleagues in the Philippines held their first nursing research conference in September 2008. Our European colleagues (Smith, 2007), in assessing research progress in that region, have indicated a need for continuing dialogue that addresses the tension between being pragmatic while being cognizant of the need to “embed work within government policy” (p. 299). The Canadian Health Services Foundation, in its 2008 status report on nursing research in Canada, indicated that “the growth and development of research capacity in nursing over the past seven to 10 years has been remarkable” (p. 22). Our colleagues in South America, Asia and Africa have been equally successful in improving recognition of the contribution that nursing research makes to the science of nursing and global health.

Nurses have access to an increasing number of research journals, as well as journals focused on evidence-based practice. An example of the latter is WORLDviews on Evidence-Based Nursing, published by the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International. Not only is the number of journals increasing but so, too, is access. For example, the Australian Journal of Advanced Nursing was made available online, free of charge, in October 2007.

Nurse leaders hold key positions to influence policy. For example, Mary K. Wakefield, RN, PhD, is the administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration, an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. In many countries of the world, colleagues serve in chief nurse officer positions.

Nurse and midwife leaders around the world have worked relentlessly to raise the level of basic education that nurses and midwives receive. One outcome of their efforts has been development and publication of a resource titled Global Standards for Initial Nursing and Midwifery Education (2008). Published by the World Health Organization, the directing and coordinating authority for health within the United Nations system, these standards are being implemented and evaluated in select regions of the world.

Most importantly, to recognize the critical contribution nurses make to the health of the world’s people and pay homage to Florence Nightingale’s many contributions to nursing, three organizations—the Nightingale Initiative for Global Health, the Florence Nightingale Museum, London, and Sigma Theta Tau International—have collaborated to create an international recognition program titled the 2010 International Year of the Nurse. Take time to explore the 2010 IYN Web site. You will find stories of how nurses have shown their commitment to addressing the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals.

The honor society’s regional coordinators, as well as its chapter leaders, have been challenged to identify a variety of methods by which they can recognize nurses throughout the year. For example, members could hold an event that honors nurses and highlights contributions nurses make to individual, community or global health. It may be a dinner, community service activity or a story published in the local newspaper.

I look forward to hearing how you meet the challenge of celebrating nursing within the context of the 2010 International Year of the Nurse. I am confident that members will undertake activities that highlight what nurses—and STTI members—do best, making a difference in the health of the world’s people! RNL

Karen H. Morin, RN, DSN, ANEF

References:
Canadian Health Services Research Foundation. (2008). Nursing research in Canada: A status report. Retrieved 9 March 2010 from http://www.chsrf.ca/nursing_research_fund/documents/
NursingResCapFinalReport_ENG_Finalb.pdf

Smith L.N. (2007). Nursing research in Europe: A progress report. Journal of Research in Nursing, 12, 293-300.