The International Council of Nurses (ICN) has launched a #NursesforPeace social media campaign to join nurses around the world in solidarity with the nurses of Ukraine.
ICN in partnership with the European Federation of Nurses Associations (EFN) and the European Forum of National Nursing and Midwifery Associations (EFNNMA) issued a powerful statement on March 3, 2022. Speaking on behalf of the global nursing community, they condemn the illegal invasion of Ukraine and call for an immediate ceasefire.
ICN is encouraging nurses around the
globe to participate in the social media campaign and to add our support by
signing the statement.
Thank you to ICN and European partners for your strong leadership at this critical moment and for demonstrating support for the Ukrainian people in this call for humanitarian action. For updates and suggested actions, please visit the ICN website.
#NursesforPeace
By Nora
Whyte – March 3, 2022
I
acknowledge with respect that I live on the Unceded traditional territory of
the K’òmoks First Nation.
A highlight of 2021 was the opportunity to participate in the International Council of Nurses (ICN) Congress, held in a virtual format for the first time. The ICN Board and Staff team along with congress partner Emirates Nursing Association did an outstanding job of hosting the three-day event attended by 5,000 nurses and guests from around the globe. Speakers and participants added to the richness of the discussions on key topics relevant to nursing today and conveyed the sense of urgency on workforce issues and equity in global health. Among the important documents discussed was the Global Strategic Directions for Nursing and Midwifery 2021–2025 released in April 2021 by the World Health Organization. Four focal areas for health systems – education, jobs, leadership and service delivery – were important strategic directions covered in congress sessions.
I enjoyed the daily keynote presentations and the continuity provided by ICN leaders who conveyed the enthusiasm and spirit I had experienced at past congresses. However, I did miss the informal social gatherings and memorable encounters with nurses from other countries at congresses in Singapore (2019), Barcelona (2017) and Durban (2009).
Prior to the congress, I was pleased to continue my collaboration with Patrick Chui and Susan Duncan in planning a presentation delivered by Patrick as a pre-recorded oral concurrent session. The presentation drew on previous work and explored policy advocacy leadership by Canadian nursing organizations using a current example of COVID-19 vaccine equity. We discussed ways in which nursing organizations demonstrate policy advocacy leadership in highly complex and evolving contexts. In our conclusion we proposed areas of research that will be useful in generating knowledge to strengthen nursing organizations’ influence on health systems and policy.
Professional Development Highlights
Webinars were the way to go for professional development this year. I enjoyed sessions organized by the Canadian Nurses Association throughout 2021 and the Annual Marion Woodward Lecture hosted by UBC School of Nursing in November. A stimulating session in December was hosted by the International Collaboration for Community Health Nursing Research (ICCHNR): Dr. Barbara Stilwell delivered the annual Lisbeth Hockey Lecture on The Power of the Nursing Narrative. I liked Barbara Stilwell’s call to nurses: “Let’s power together” as she concluded her lecture. Thank you to the organizers and speakers for contributing to my learning and thinking during the past year.
A New Roadmap
Looking to this new year and beyond, the WHO Regional Office for Europe has published Building Better Together: Roadmap to Guide Implementation of the Global Strategic Directions for Nursing and Midwifery in the European Region. As noted in the foreword by Hans Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe, “…we will work over the next five years to ensure that nurses and midwives have the capacity to contribute to key areas of public health, primary care, long-term care and post-COVID-19 recovery. We will put this into practice through relevant education, improved working conditions, the promotion of leadership opportunities and clear career pathways.” (WHO, 2021, p. v). Taking into account regional and global policy contexts, it lays out key directions and monitoring mechanisms. It’s an excellent resource that may serve as a guide for other regions to follow.
I end my
year in review comments with a special note of appreciation to all the
colleagues who continue to involve me in fascinating projects and who stay in
touch through regular email exchanges and on social media. Thank you to my
Twitter followers!
By Nora Whyte – January 4, 2022
I acknowledge with respect that I live on
the Unceded traditional territory of the K’òmoks First Nation.
The COP26 conference opens in Glasgow on October 31, 2021 and is generating considerable interest in the weeks leading up to the event. Officially known as the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, it is the 26th UN Climate Change conference. As explained on the COP26 website, “COP stands for Conference of the Parties – the signatories of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) – a treaty agreed in 1994 which has 197 Parties (196 countries and the EU).”
Telegraph Cove, Vancouver Island, BC – August 2021
It is heartening to see the growing public awareness of climate change impacts and the sense of urgency being expressed this year. Leading health organizations have formed coalitions to advocate for climate action. A recent open letter – Healthy Climate Prescription – issued by the Global Climate and Health Alliance (a coalition of organizations representing 45 million health professionals) is a good example of this important collaboration. Describing the climate crisis as “the single biggest health threat facing humanity” the authors of the letter call on world leaders to deliver on climate action. Among the key demands listed are: “a rapid and just transition away from fossil fuels; for high income countries to provide the promised transfer of climate funds; and for pandemic recovery investments to support climate action and reduce social and health inequities.” Likewise, leading international health journals have published a strong editorial that appeared in multiple journals in September with a vital message: “Reflecting the severity of the moment, this editorial appears in health journals across the world. We are united in recognising that only fundamental and equitable changes to societies will reverse our current trajectory.”
The annual Lancet Countdown: Tracking Progress on Health and Climate Change report was released on October 21, 2021. Key findings are presented in five domains: 1) climate change impacts, exposures, and vulnerabilities; 2) adaptation, planning, and resilience for health; 3) mitigation actions and health co-benefits; 4) economics and finance; and 5) public and political engagement. Indicators are provided under each of the domains to give a quick view of changes since the previous report.
In Canada, the Canadian Association of Nurses for the Environment (CANE-AIIE) has been active since 2009. Their website features articles, presentations, and campaigns. CANE was among the Canadian signatories to the Healthy Climate Prescription letter, along with the Canadian Nurses Association, Canadian Medical Association, Canadian Public Health Association, and other organizations. I found CANE’s definition of planetary health quite helpful in thinking about the health of populations and the natural world:
Planetary health is a recognition of the fact that human health depends on healthy natural environments/ecosystems, and moreover, that we as a civilization find ourselves at a tipping point. We have depended on our natural systems to promote human health to the point where the human population is healthier than ever before, but to achieve this, we have exploited the planet at an unprecedented rate. If we want to continue to safeguard human health, we also need to maintain the health of the planet and its natural systems on which we depend (CANE website, n.d.).
Nurses are being called upon to use our individual and collective influence. Writing in the International Nursing Review, Dr. Pamela Mitchell (2021) offers a thoughtful piece on Nursing’s mandate in climate change. She notes that nurses have written about climate change in the context of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and now urges collective advocacy to move our focus to climate justice and equity.
Dr. Sally Thorne’s recent editorial in Nursing Inquiry, Awakening to the climate emergency, is a fitting reminder to nurses to pay attention to planetary health. As Editor-in Chief, she anticipates an increase in manuscripts on “a nursing response to the climate crisis” as we take up a shared goal (Thorne, 2021).
I believe that events of recent years are awakening us to the urgency to act as part of our organizations, coalitions, and nations in the quest for climate justice.
Post COP26 Update: The Global Climate and Health Alliance provided an assessment of what was achieved and what work remains. There is positive news in COP26’s Glasgow Climate Pact “that re-commits governments to limiting temperature rise to 1.5C, in line with the most recent science” with concern about the lack of substance in the countries’ commitments. Read more in the media release from Glasgow dated November 13, 2021.
The International Council of Nurses issued a strong statement on the final day of COP26: “ICN is calling for nurses and other healthcare workers to be included at the centre of climate change policymaking, underscoring that climate change is a health issue. As COP26 closes and leaders look ahead to COP27 next year, ICN says it is more important than ever that the voice of health professionals is heard on the climate change debate because if nothing changes nurses and health systems will suffer the consequences.” See full media release (November 12, 2021).
By Nora Whyte – October 24, 2021 (Updated November 22, 2021)
I acknowledge
with respect that I live on the Unceded traditional territory of
the K’òmoks First Nation.
References:
Mitchell, P.H. (2021). Nursing’s mandate in climate change. International
NursingReview, 68, 279– 280. https://doi.org/10.1111/inr.12704
Each year at this time I write a short piece to reflect on National Nursing Week in Canada and follow what others are posting on social media. This year there isn’t much to say that hasn’t been said already by nursing leaders and through Canadian media coverage of nursing during COVID times. I do want to commend leaders in nursing organizations and to thank colleagues for the tremendous work they have been doing under such difficult circumstances. I think about nurses I have known in India, Nepal, and South Africa and wonder how they’re doing. I hear stories about nurses in all parts of Canada who continue to be key to the COVID response and I learn from colleagues in my circle about their recent experiences with the vaccination rollout in British Columbia.
International Council of Nurses May 2021
ICN celebrates International Nurses Day on May 12 each year. This year, it has released an excellent report Nurses: A Voice to Lead – A Vision for Future Healthcare. The report calls for nurses to become the “architects and designers” of health systems, not only the people who deliver care. Among the report’s key recommendations are that governments embrace this new global strategy for nursing and embed its recommendations into their national healthcare strategies.
A graphic that captures the vision for future health care is found on page 7 highlighting the report’s framework and recommendations. It lists six aspects of health care transformation and five ways to support nurses to leverage a better health system. Transformation includes a renewed emphasis on public health nursing, investments in innovation along with greater attention to quality and affordable care. Approaches for supporting nurses focus on safe workplaces, valuing the role of nurses, and better access to education and professional development. This year’s report provided information on a survey of National Nursing Associations on aspects of the COVID response and current issues for evolving the profession. The report is illustrated with country spotlights from the nursing associations and media reports.
Another major report published this month marks the culmination of the global Nursing Now campaign – Agents of Change: the story of the Nursing Now campaign. Although I had followed the campaign since its launch in 2018, I hadn’t been aware of all the impressive accomplishments described in the report. The appraisal of the process and outcomes to date are worth reviewing; it is interesting to know that the reach extended to 729 Nursing Now groups in 126 countries. There’s a strong message to build on the campaign’s momentum as noted on page 14:
“The Nursing Now campaign has generated tremendous energy from nurses and their allies. They have truly come together as agents of change. It is critical at this pivotal moment, as the world turns its attention to rebuilding health systems for the future, that nurses do not lose this momentum.”
Holloway et al. (2021).
A final note for nurses with an interest in global health policy, ICN’s Global Nursing Leadership Institute (GNLI) is worth exploring as a career development step. BC’s Angela Wignall shared her enthusiasm and described her recent experience as a GNLI scholar in a two-part blog for the Nurses and Nurse Practitioners of BC: Part 1 on the ICN Global Nursing Leadership Institute and Part 2 on Nursing Bodies: Learning from Global Examples. To learn more, please see the GNLI program overview with details about the program and the application process.
By Nora Whyte – May 22, 2021
I acknowledge with respect that I live on the Unceded traditional territory of the K’òmoks First Nation.
References:
Holloway, A., Thomson, A., Stilwell, B., Finch, H., Irwin, K., and Crisp, N.(2021). Agents of Change: the story of the Nursing Now campaign. Nursing Now/Burdett Trust for Nursing. London.
International Council of Nurses. (2021). Nurses: A Voice to Lead – A Vision for Future Healthcare. Geneva.
This week I received the first newsletter for the 2021 International Council of Nurses (ICN) virtual congress taking place in November. This congress promises to be a highly relevant one for these times with the theme of “Nursing Around the World” using a virtual format that will increase access to the event.
Abstracts are due by March 11, 2021 for e-posters and oral concurrent sessions on eight sub-themes. Sub-themes include Nursing Workforce, Epidemics & Pandemics, Global Health Challenges, and Digital Health & Innovation. The concurrent sessions will be 10-minute pre-recorded video presentations grouped by sub-theme.
Having attended past ICN congresses – in Barcelona, Durban, Singapore, and Vancouver – I can attest to the value of meeting nurses from around the world, listening to their presentations, and learning about policy advocacy to apply to my own work. Along with colleagues, I have submitted abstracts and been part of presentations. And sometimes an encounter at a congress has led to later collaboration and exchanges.
Global Vaccine Equity
Throughout the
pandemic ICN has been vocal on the behalf of nurses and health workers globally
and is supporting the current WHO campaign on vaccine equity in the first
months of 2021, the Year of the Health and Care Worker.
The WHO Declaration calls on “global, national and local leaders to accelerate the equitable rollout of vaccines in every country, starting with health workers and those at highest risk for COVID-19. This includes scaling up vaccine manufacturing and rejecting vaccine nationalism at every turn.”
WHO urges world leaders to increase contributions to the COVAX facility and also calls on Ministries of Health “to work with WHO and others to invest in and prepare their primary health care systems for distribution of COVID-19 vaccines to their health workers.” Further, as is expressed often these days, distribution of vaccines quickly and equitably will be key to ending the pandemic. Individuals and organizations can lend their support by signing the declaration and by getting messages out through social media. #VaccinEquity
By Nora
Whyte – February 18, 2021
Iacknowledge with respect that I live on the Unceded traditional territory of the K’òmoks First Nation.
This is the time of year when membership fees are due and the reminders start rolling in. It is a time when I consider whether or not to renew my membership in various organizations and what commitments I’ll make in the year ahead. In particular at the start of 2021, I have been thinking about the privilege of membership in the Canadian Nurses Association.
As noted on its website, the Canadian Nurses Association (CNA) is “the national and global voice of Canadian nursing, working with nurses in all 13 jurisdictions across Canada to bring essential and meaningful change to health care and nursing in the country.” Membership is open to all regulated nurses who may join as individuals or through their membership in provincial and territorial associations in jurisdictions that are CNA members. Major changes in jurisdictional nursing organizations across Canada will continue to have an impact on national membership. For the first time, I will be taking out an individual membership because the annual membership fee in my provincial association, the Nurses and Nurse Practitioners of British Columbia (NNPBC), no longer includes CNA membership. I remain supportive of NNPBC and CNA and hope that we’ll see new membership models and fee structures in the coming years. Membership in CNA is a vital link to our dynamic global nursing body, the International Council of Nurses.
During the summer and fall of 2020, CNA conducted a member survey to build on dialogue and engagement sessions conducted in 2019 & 2020. For a good overview of survey results, see Your Voice, Your Association.
Survey respondents viewed
CNA in a favourable way with 81% noting that a national professional association
is essential. Communication is key to
engagement and three preferred methods are: direct email, social media &
webinars. Ideas for building a strong and effective association include:
Engage with membership on a grassroots level
Offer more mental health resources
Offer more continuing education opportunities
Forge strong partnerships with provincial and territorial associations
Highlights of the past year – shaped so dramatically and sadly by the pandemic – were linked to my longtime interest in professional associations and their role in policy advocacy clearly in evidence during 2020. It was satisfying to be a co-author with stellar colleagues, Patrick Chiu and Susan Duncan, on an article published in the Canadian Journal of Nursing Research:
In our abstract we
indicate how we drew on “recent key
national and global events including our systematic inquiry into Canada’s 2019
federal election, the Year of the Nurse and Midwife, and the Coronavirus
pandemic to examine how Canadian nursing organizations respond in highly
complex and evolving contexts.” Further, we used our observations to offer a
vision and chart a research agenda for the advancement of nursing
organizations’ influence on health systems and policy.
Another highlight that took place at the end of 2020 was receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award from NNPBC at a wonderful virtual 2020 Nursing Awards of Excellence Ceremony featuring music, dance, videos, and special messages from CNA and others. It was an emotional and proud moment to be among the group of BC nurses recognized for contributions to the profession in our province.
Award from NNPBC – December 2020
I look
forward to staying connected to nursing’s collective presence and voice provincially,
nationally, and globally in 2021.
By Nora
Whyte – January 19, 2021
I acknowledge with respect that I live on the Unceded traditional territory of the K’òmoks First Nation.
Postscript: February 21, 2021
For nurses from BC, the process of membership renewal in CNA was delayed at the start of this year. I was unable to renew in January as planned. Glad to see that the membership portal is working now and that we can renew or rejoin as BC registrants or retired members. Annual membership gives us access to the Canadian Nurse and opportunities to participate in our national association and the ICN. In fact, to submit an abstract (as first author) for the ICN Congress in November, one must belong to a National Nursing Association. I’m thankful that CNA is a member of ICN and that’s one of my primary reasons for renewing my CNA membership.
I am writing this post as National Nursing Week in Canada
draws to a close. It has been a strange time of celebration mixed with sadness
at the losses experienced globally and the ongoing concern about the health of
populations and the long road to recovery.
During this Nursing Week, I found that our Canadian nursing leaders reflected what many of us have been thinking about our profession during the time of COVID. I greatly appreciated reading CNA President Claire Betker’s editorial in the Canadian Nurse: On the importance of nurses in 2020. Claire highlighted the opportunity to raise the profile of the profession during the International Year of the Nurse and the Midwife and demonstrated the many ways in which Canadian nurses have made an impact.
International Nurses Day was celebrated globally on May 12, the 200th anniversary of Florence Nightingale’s birth. This year’s theme, Nurses: A Voice to Lead – Nursing the World to Health captured both the spirit and the urgency of nursing’s vital global role. The International Council of Nurses provided excellent resources on its International Nurses Day site and was highly visible in media interviews and in generating social media energy. ICN’s CEO Howard Catton tweeted: “Let our celebrations be a clarion call for real commitments to actions and investments to support nurses to do the work that the world desperately needs them to do.” Annette Kennedy, ICN President, expressed her appreciation to the global nursing community and held a great video conversation with Dr. Tedros on May 12. It’s worth viewing and reflecting on their messages!
This week also provided opportunities to profile the State of the World’s Nursing 2020 Report, released in April 2020 and now gaining attention. This landmark publication has highlighted the urgent need for acceleration of nursing education, job creation and leadership. The report’s call to strengthen nursing leadership is “to ensure that nurses have an influential role in health policy formulation and decision-making, and contribute to the effectiveness of health and social care systems” (WHO, 2020).
Nursing Week 2020 has played out in a vastly different way than anticipated; however, there is no doubt that the theme of “Nursing the World to Health” is more important than ever as we face the remainder of 2020 using a professional, powerful and collective voice to lead.
It was a banner year of professional highlights topped by participating in the International Council of Nurses Congress in Singapore where I presented a poster with Susan Duncan and met other delegates from many countries. Also in Singapore it was a great pleasure to reconnect with the team from the Canadian Nurses Association and other Canadian delegates representing nursing education, unions, professional associations and regulators. Susan Duncan and I wrote post-ICN reflections in blog posts and have appreciated the positive comments in response.
Susan Duncan and Nora Whyte in Singapore – June 2019
UBC Gala – May 2019
Other highlights included celebrating the Centenary of the UBC School of Nursing throughout 2019 by attending a beautiful gala in May and the inaugural Verna Huffman Splane Public Health Nursing Lecture in September. Both events provided opportunities to honour those who have contributed to the profession, to meet colleagues and to build on the legacy of earlier generations of leaders
Looking Ahead
The International Year of the Nurse and the Midwife has launched and will be a focus of global attention and action throughout 2020. Barbara Stilwell, executive director of Nursing Now, has written an excellent overview in Off the Charts – the blog of the American Journal of Nursing – in which she notes the current challenge of a global workforce crisis, the vital role of nurses and midwives in contributing to universal health coverage and new opportunities to raise the visibility of nursing and midwifery during 2020. Read her post here and visit the Nursing Now site for updates.
My own 2020 projects include:
Involvement with the Nurses and Nurse Practitioners of BC (NNPBC). I have signed up for NNPBC’s Ambassador Program and look forward to contributing to our professional association in British Columbia through an exciting new phase of activity getting underway this year.
Continuation of writing projects with colleagues including blog posts on policy themes.
Contract work with the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council Nursing Department to update nursing policies in preparation for accreditation this year.
As we move into the first month of 2020, I remain committed to my local and global involvement and will follow events with interest in what promises to be an outstanding moment for our profession.
Nursing Now launched in 2018 as a global collaboration among the Burdett Trust for Nursing, the International Council of Nurses (ICN) and the World Health Organization (WHO). I have been following developments and have used this Blog to share highlights and links to updates from time to time.
On
the cusp of 2020, Nursing Now is perfectly positioned to play a leadership role
during the 2020 Year of the Nurse and the Midwife. Events and celebrations are
planned throughout the year. In their most recent update (November 2019), the
Nursing Now campaign team stated: “During 2020, we
are united in our ambition to propel nursing and midwifery into the spotlight
and onto the agenda of governments, with the ultimate goal of improving health
globally.”
As
Nursing Now has gained momentum, I have been pleased to note the connection to
the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). There’s increasing recognition that nurses
and midwives are contributing to the SDGs and are absolutely vital to delivering
Universal Health Coverage by 2030.
A new aspect of Nursing Now announced during the ICN Congress in Singapore in June is the Nightingale Challenge currently being promoted as a key leadership development strategy for 2020 and beyond:
The Challenge is asking every health employer around the world to provide leadership and development training for a group of their young nurses and midwives during 2020, the Year of the Nurse and the Midwife, to support them as practitioners, and enhance their skills as advocates and leaders in health.
Nursing Now Canada launched in 2019 with plans for national initiatives in three ‘pillars’ as outlined in its June 3, 2019 media release:
Nursing Leadership pillar – to
establish a hub to educate, empower and support regulated nurses to lead,
advocate, innovate, influence public policy and create sustainable change in
health.
Chief
Nursing Officer pillar – to establish federal, provincial and territorial chief
nursing officers in leadership positions within ministries of health.
Indigenous
pillar – to support nurses and midwives in providing culturally safe care and
to strengthen the power of Indigenous nurses.
The
Canadian Nurses Association is the official link for Canadian nurses to the
global Nursing Now campaign and is carrying out this three-point action plan in
partnership with the Canadian Indigenous Nurses Association and Indigenous
Services Canada.
From here at home to events on the world stage, communities of nurses and midwives will be joining their colleagues and supporters in celebrating the Year of the Nurse and the Midwife in 2020.
Update November 23, 2019
It was a delight to read an editorial published in The Lancet today (Volume 394) entitled 2020: unleashing the full potential of nursing and drawing attention to Nursing Now and the Nightingale Challenge. The editorial makes the case for enhancing nursing to enhance health and looks to the opportunity of 2020 “to showcase the evidence and impact of what nurses and midwives do, and to ensure that they are enabled, resources and supported to meet the world’s health needs.” Thanks to The Lancet for this timely editorial and the social media interest it is generating.
The highlight of this summer was the opportunity to be part of a global gathering of 5,300 nurses at the International Council of Nurses Congress in Singapore from June 27 to July 1. Hosted by the Singapore Nurses Association, it was truly a banner event: well-organized in every aspect and with a warm welcome from local volunteers as delegates arrived each day.
Welcome from Singapore Nurses Association at Opening Ceremony. Photo Credit: ICN
We describe recent ICN initiatives including the partnership with Nursing Now and the exciting launch of the Nightingale Challenge. We reflect on the dynamic presence of the World Health Organization throughout the Congress and the increasing recognition of the vital role of nurses in achieving the WHO goal of Universal Health Coverage. The designation by WHO of 2020 as the Year of the Nurse and the Midwife presents a great opportunity for participation in decision-making bodies and in events including the World Health Assembly next year.
ICN President Annette Kennedy. Photo credit: ICN
Other highlights included meeting delegates from many countries during receptions, lunches, poster sessions and policy cafés. We reconnected with colleagues from our national organizations and enjoyed encounters with Canadian students and early career nurses.
Canadian Nurses Association President Claire Betker
For further details on the 2019 Congress and to view presentation slides, photos and speaker profiles, see the archives here.
