Demands on nurses continue to grow
Health care: Educators have a responsibility to continually improve and update nursing curricula
For the first time in almost 20 years, the number of nurses in Canada is on the decline. In B.C., the number of nurses dropped by almost one per cent between 2013 and 2014.
The decline, reported by the Canadian Institute for Health Information, may appear to be small, but it is cause for concern because while Canadians are generally living longer, health concerns remain significant across key age groups. Forty-two per cent of Canadians aged 12 and over report living with at least one chronic illness, such as diabetes or cardiovascular disease. Canadian seniors are also facing growing health challenges.
Whether or not the drop in nursing numbers is a temporary blip, nursing educators have a responsibility to ensure their graduates are fully qualified and ready to provide care.
At the spring convocation, I was deeply moved by the sight of the 119 graduates of the UBC School of Nursing undergraduate program. After an intensive 20-month training regimen in the Bachelor of Science in Nursing program, these graduates will be serving in hospitals, emergency departments, shelters, community health units, surgical and ambulatory clinics, and other spaces where patients will be in need of competent, compassionate care.
Even as we launch them into their careers, we will be looking at newer ways to improve the nursing curriculum so every cohort of graduates is better than the last. It’s our responsibility to keep curricula current and attuned to social needs. Canada is aging, dementia cases are rising, and we have to be prepared.
I offer young people who will soon enter their final year in secondary school a challenge.
When you’re deciding on your career, consider nursing — the need is huge. You could qualify to be an RN (registered nurse, for which you’ll need a bachelor’s degree), an LPN (licensed practical nurse), or an RPN (registered psychiatric nurse). You could move in another direction and qualify to be a Nurse Practitioner, an RN with a master’s degree in advanced nursing practice.
If your interests point you more toward graduate work, or research and teaching, those are excellent career paths as well. Master’s degrees and PhDs will give you opportunities to teach and lead the next generation of nurses and to conduct research that drives significant changes in our communities and health care systems.
Nursing has a long history as a pragmatic and solutions-- oriented profession. Nurses are problem-solvers and catalysts for change, always looking for ways to improve their patients’ wellbeing. To meet our current and emerging health care needs, we must ensure that nursing education continues to prepare graduates to excel in clinical practice, leadership, and research skills. We must emphasize that nursing is a patient-centred practice.
We need to continue to develop innovative teaching methods and program delivery models that think beyond the constraints of the present system. We need to see increased investment in and recognition of the nursing profession, including greater opportunities for nurses to work to their full scope of practice alongside other health professionals.
Ethel Johns, the founding director of the UBC School of Nursing, pioneered nursing as a profession with educational and practice standards. It’s up to all of us to make sure nursing remains inventive, innovative, and relevant in our time.