Registered Nurses Journal May June
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RN says camp isn’t just for kids • AGM 2008 • Banning the cosmetic use of pesticides Registered NurseMay/June 2008 JOURNAL MORE THAN JUST A JOB Susan Sorrenti is one of many RNs who hope increased awareness, respect and excitement for the profession will remedy the nursing shortage. PM 40006768 Get back in action. Chiropractic is right behind you, helping 4.5 million Canadians a year return to active, healthy lives. So you can tend to the things you love. Find out more at www.chiropractic.on.ca. Ontario Chiropractic Association. Treatment That Stands Up. _OCA08002_RegNurseJour_GARDENING1 1 3/6/08 1:29:20 PM Registered Nurse JOURNAL Volume 20, No. 3, May/June 2008 FEATURES CAMP NURSING HELPS RN RECHARGE 07 By Jill Scarrow Having spent every summer at camp since she was five years old, it’s no wonder RN Cheryl Bernknopf has made a career out of caring for kids as they enjoy Ontario’s wilderness. FINDING SOLUTIONS 11 CLOSE TO HOME International recruiting – also known as poaching – is not an ethically sound or sustainable solution to nursing shortages in Canada or abroad. MORE THAN JUST A JOB 12 By Jill Scarrow RNs across the province are increasing awareness, respect and excitement for everything the profession has to offer.They hope it will help remedy Ontario’s nursing shortage. NURSES: EVERDAY HEROES 12 17 By Kimberley Kearsey More than 500 members gathered April 10-11 THE LINEUP for the 2008 annual general meeting. EDITOR’S NOTE 4 Cover photography: Paul Orenstein PRESIDENT’S VIEW 5 EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S DISPATCH 6 NURSING IN THE NEWS 8 OUT AND ABOUT 10 POLICY AT WORK 25 NEWS TO YOU/NEWS TO USE 26 SPECIAL NURSING WEEK PULL-OUT SECTION IN THIS ISSUE CALENDAR 27 The journal of the REGISTERED NURSES' Editor’s Note ASSOCIATION OF ONTARIO (RNAO) 158 Pearl Street Toronto ON, M5H 1L3 Phone: 416-599-1925 Toll-Free: 1-800-268-7199 Fax: 416-599-1926 Website: www.rnao.org E-mail: [email protected] Letters to the editor: [email protected] Nurses inspire others EDITORIAL STAFF Marion Zych, Publisher Kimberley Kearsey, Managing Editor Jill Scarrow, Writer at home office and beyond Stacey Hale, Editorial Assistant EDITORIAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE During my seven years at RNAO, I’ve met two fellow Carmen James-Henry, Chair Joseph Gajasan, Anne Kelly, Holly Lake, staff members who started at the association without ambitions Shannon Landry, Rosanna Wilson of becoming a nurse, but who left in pursuit of their BScN. Kate CREATIVE DIRECTION Melino, the policy department’s 25-year-old research assistant, is Fresh Art & Design Inc. the latest convert. She’s decided to pursue international nursing; ART DIRECTION something she says she got a taste for when she completed her S. Dale Vokey/Dean Mitchell first degree in anthropology and did a three-month internship ADVERTISING in South Africa in 2004. Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario When I asked Kate about the catalyst for her career shift, she told me it was Phone: 416-599-1925, Fax: 416-599-1926 RNAO.Working at the association not only made her realize the many opportunities SUBSCRIPTIONS available to nurses, it also solidified her resolve to do something important with her Registered Nurse Journal, ISSN 1484-0863, is a benefit to members of the RNAO. Paid subscriptions are welcome. Full sub- life. She said she’s always talking to members who are proud of what they do, and she scription prices for one year (six issues), including taxes: Canada too wants to make a difference in people’s lives. $37.80 (GST); Outside Canada: $42. Printed with vegetable- based inks on recycled paper (50 per cent recycled and 20 per Kate has been inspired by members. I have as well. I’ve probably interviewed hun- cent post-consumer fibre) on acid-free paper. dreds of nurses in my time as writer for this magazine and I can confidently say that Registered Nurse Journal is published six times a year by RNAO.The views or opinions expressed in the editorials, articles or just about every conversation I’ve had at some point comes around to the passion and advertisements are those of the authors/advertisers and do not enthusiasm it takes to be an RN. I’ve been sufficiently inspired by so many nurses that, necessarily represent the policies of RNAO or the Editorial Advisory Committee. RNAO assumes no responsibility or liability if not for my weak stomach and aversion to science (I’ve always been better at using for damages arising from any error or omission or from the use of any information or advice contained in the Registered Nurse the other side of my brain), I might have also been persuaded to consider a career shift Journal including editorials, studies, reports, letters and advertise- – if not for the personal fulfillment, then most certainly to fill the need. ments.All articles and photos accepted for publication become the property of the Registered Nurse Journal. Indexed in It’s no secret RNs are in short supply in Ontario, and more people like Kate need Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature. to be persuaded to consider the profession. In this issue of the magazine, we introduce CANADIAN POSTMASTER: Undeliverable copies you to some of the nurses who are doing the persuading.We share some of their suc- and change of address to: RNAO, 158 Pearl Street, Toronto ON, M5H 1L3. Publications Mail Agreement cesses and explore the steps they say still need to be taken to boost nursing numbers. No. 40006768. We talk to new grads who say more should be done to get teenagers thinking about nursing at a younger age. And we talk to administrators who haven’t lost sight of the RNAO OFFICERS AND SENIOR MANAGEMENT Wendy Fucile, RN, BScN, MPA, CHE women and men who are already in the profession, and what it will take to convince President, ext. 504 them to stay longer. Mary Ferguson-Paré, RN, PhD, CHE Immediate Past President, ext. 502 With their continued efforts to raise awareness, demand respect and instill excite- Doris Grinspun, RN, MSN, PhD (c), O.Ont. ment for everything nursing has to offer, it’s just a matter of time before Kate realizes Executive Director, ext. 206 how lucky she was to get in before the rush. Sheila Block, MA Director, Health and Nursing Policy, ext. 215 Kimberley Kearsey Daniel Lau, MBA Director, Membership and Services, ext. 218 Managing Editor Anitta Robertson, RN, BAAN, MPA Director, Centre for Professional Nursing Excellence, ext. 240 Irmajean Bajnok, RN, MScN, PhD Director, International Affairs and Best Practice Guidelines Programs, ext. 234 Heather McConnell, RN, BScN, MA (Ed) Associate Director, International Affairs and Best Practice Guidelines Programs, ext. 248 Marion Zych, BA, Journalism, BA, Political Science Director, Communications, ext. 209 Nancy Campbell, MBA Director, Finance and Administration, ext. 229 We want to hear from you Please e-mail letters to [email protected] or fax 416-599-1926. Please limit responses to 150-250 words and include your name, credentials, hometown and telephone number. RNAO reserves the right to edit letters for length and clarity. 4 May/J une 2008 President’s View with Wendy Fucile Committed to raising an authentic voice that reflects our core values It hardly seems pos- Nursing has solutions. Those solutions from our most deep-seated values. sible that it is two include, but are not limited to, supporting all Authentic relationships must also reflect — months since our nurses to work at their full scope of practice and respect — those same values.Anything annual general meet- and expanding that scope, and shifting the less will diminish our success in achieving ing. As I write this traditional power structures in our health the goals before us. first message, I am system to more effectively serve the needs of It is the tradition of our association that again mindful of the our time.They also require both strong rela- each president bring focus to an issue of tremendous honour tionships and committed voice. personal interest. I find myself at a particular and the humbling responsibility that I took We are so much more effective in the moment in time, where the intersection of a on, in trust from each of you, that day in company of others who share our core val- long history in hospital-based leadership April. I am also conscious that I have big ues and who are committed, as RNAO is, and a still young career in nursing education shoes to fill.As I have said to Mary,‘You are to passionately supporting those values, not have helped me recognize ever more clearly one tough act to follow.’ only in words but in actions. To that end, the critical bond between practice and edu- The leadership Mary cation. This is an area has provided for all, the Voice gives richness to our relationships, where I will use both rela- mentoring and friendship tionship and voice, on she has extended to me allowing both the renewal of existing and behalf of nursing and the personally, and her con- broader public we serve, to tinued presence, experi- the development of new... Authentic voice strengthen that bond. ence and wisdom, will ‘‘ The nursing students I serve us well as she arises from our most deep-seated values. am privileged to work with embarks on her year as each and every day are immediate past president. Authentic relationships must also reflect that... impressive, thoughtful, The extraordinary leader- challenging young men ship that we all experi- Anything less will diminish our success in and women.