National Nurses Week: What is Your Personal View of Nursing?
We thought we’d end Nurses Week by asking select faculty at Excelsior College what the profession means to them. Join us in celebrating the importance of nursing and how it contributes to making us who we are.
“What is your personal view of nursing?”
“My personal view of nursing is that it is a profession that provided me with opportunities of growth and discovery. Nursing wasn’t my chosen profession, but it has become a good fit for me. I’ve been able to use my clinical skills in caring for patients, teaching students and nurses, and establishing a consultation practice as an expert witness.”
–Sharon Aronovitch, Ph.D., RN, CWOCN
“My personal view of nursing is that it’s both a science and an art. I use transformational leadership theories to promote nursing leadership as both a science and an art by mentoring graduate nursing students with an interest in teaching. By using transformational leadership theory, I can convey that teaching the science of nursing is itself an art. Nurses can promote the importance of nurse leadership through nursing empowerment, innovations, and initiatives in nursing.”
–Bonny Kehm, PhD, RN
“When I first became a nurse, I took great pride in my mastery of technical skills…I could put an IV in anybody-LOL! I soon realized that despite our emphasis on technical skills in nursing education, that’s not what nursing is about at all. Many years later now, my memorable moments as an oncology nurse all center around the relationships I developed with my patients as they navigated the terribly unfair ravages of a cancer diagnosis. I celebrated with them when the news was good and grieved with them when it wasn’t. Yes, I continued to place really good IVs (still beating that drum!) but that became less important to me as time went on. I finally understood that only through a caring relationship could I truly understand what was important to the patient, and could then work to meet their needs.”
–Caroline Mosca, PhD, RN
“Nursing is my second profession. I wanted a profession that gave me the opportunity to give back and had flexibility. Nursing did and does that for me. I was incredibly honored to care for patients in a hospital setting, through homecare and as a clinical coordinator. Now I get to give back by helping others achieve their dreams of becoming an RN. I feel truly blessed to have chosen nursing, or maybe it chose me!”
–Mark Wahl, MS, RN
“Simply put, nurses are the face of hope.”
–Karla Scavo, MS, RN
