We Are USA
1997; Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; Volume: 97; Issue: 8 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1097/00000446-199708000-00002
ISSN1538-7488
Autores Resumo(Figure 1) The 21st Quadrennial Congress of the International Council of Nurses was abundant with opportunities for American pride and reminders of the fact that we are one among many participants in a global nursing community.These occasions for national pride can only be appreciated with the proper frame of reference. The ICN is more than a symbol of nursing's international presence. With its 118 national nursing associations, the ICN has created a network that penetrates into every corner of the world. It speaks for nursing in such prestigious forums as the World Health Organization, the International Labor Organization, the United Nations, UNICEF, the World Hospital Federation, and the International Red Cross. Its mission is to advance the profession, defend the welfare of nurses, and safeguard the interests of the public. Both directly and through the cooperative spirit of many of its national associations, the ICN lives the philosophy that the global nursing community is only as strong as its weakest link. And it is in this spirit of mutual respect and concern that nurses came together in Vancouver in June. Words are inadequate to convey the solidarity and common bond among nurses as they shared in the experience of the Quadrennial Congress and the deliberations of the Council of Nurse Representatives, ICN's policymaking body. The opening ceremony was rich with American pride as Hildegard Peplau received the Christiane Reimann Award, international nursing's highest honor, in recognition of her pioneering work in establishing nursing autonomy. Dr. Peplau assured the holistic qualities of our practice by laying claim to the psychosocial aspects of care in the name of nursing. In her acceptance remarks, she reminded us that the question that dominated the 20th century was "What do nurses do?" In the next century, the key question will become, "What do nurses know and how do they use that knowledge to benefit people?" Gloria Smith of the Kellogg Foundation received a well-deserved standing ovation from Congress participants for her keynote address. The Foundation has a long history of financially supporting the work of the ICN and projects to establish community-based primary health care programs in many developing areas of the world. Building on this tradition, Dr. Smith characterized health as something more than health care that is intimately dependent on other social welfare areas including education, employment, housing, and transportation. In her characteristically principled style, she drew justified, and not always complimentary, comparisons between "her country" and the rest of the world. Eloquence continued with Dame June Clark's delivery of the Virginia Henderson Memorial Lecture, the first of what will become a quadrennial event. Judith Krauss, dean of the Yale School of Nursing, introduced Dame June's paper. Edward Halloran of the University of North Carolina followed with his reflections on Henderson's life and an introduction to the Henderson Memorial Program, which honors the nursing leader in several ways. In her name, an endowed fellowship will be permanently established at the ICN to promote scholarship in the area of international practice. A memorial edition of Henderson's classic text, Principles and Practices of Nursing, has been printed and was made available to Congress attendees. Copyright permission for this one-time printing was secured through the generosity of the Henderson family, guaranteeing that this book will become a collector's item. A limited number of copies are still available through American Nurses Publishing, the publishing program of the American Nurses Foundation. But Margretta Madden Styles, in the final days of her presidency, was the superstar for all seasons. Presiding at the Council of Nurse Representatives, she was faced with the unprecedented situation of one national association being displaced by another, claiming to be more representative of nurses in its country. The emotional exchange that ensued was fed by old allegiances and the reality that any national association can be challenged in its right to represent its country's nurses through the ICN. The moments were charged yet poignant, demanding the strength of Hercules and the wisdom of Solomon. Gretta was equal to the occasion, facilitating discussion and supporting an even-handed application of policy. There is a message here for every country. The organization that speaks for the greatest number of nurses, speaks for nursing. Further, nurses are diverse in geography, practice, and education, but all of these constituencies must be represented in the business and politics of the profession. As for my own part in these events, I was elected as first vice president of the ICN. I am simultaneously overwhelmed and elated with the privilege of representing the global nursing community.
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