Conference Time Equals Clinical Time

Submitted by:

Paul Terpstra, National Conference Director
Lisbet Rygnestad, Western Regional Director

Whereas The CNSA promotes, encourages, and provides opportunities for students to gain experience in professional activities. The CNSA believes these activities are integral to developing as a professional.

Whereas Professionalism is important to nursing, and active participation in the process, at the student level, is crucial to advancing the practice. When looking at the excellence of care “professionalism constituted an all encompassing theme subsuming [holistic care, practice, and humanism] all others” (Coulon, Mok, Krause & Anderson, 1996). Effusing from professionalism’s importance to nursing, are the benefits of being involved.

Whereas numerous studies on the “Socialization into nursing” suggest that being actively involved gives the student a solid self-concept of their roles (William, 1995; Greenawalt 1996) that will consequently help to combat low self-esteem and low self-confidence (Bright 1992). Helping to garner this solid self-concept has a positive impact on recruitment and retention (Cohen, 1992) in that it decreases job dissatisfaction, (Krichbaum, 1997) instils a level of comfort and belonging, (A basic human need Maslow’s hierarchy) and fosters a more solid commitment to nursing. (Lu & Chiou, 1998) Furthermore, it simply provides another opportunity of experience that will undoubtedly improve the quality of the nursing graduate. (Ruetter, Field, Campbell & Day, 1997)

Whereas correlating with involvement is the ability of new graduates to show a greater capacity to adapt to changing, and extremely demanding, work environments. (Bedard & Dupette, 1998) In addition to adaptation, professionally developed students are better able to see issues affecting their practice (Krichbaum, 1997), enhance collaboration and affect change in the system. (Richardson, Valentine, Wood, & Godkin, 1994) Active participation allows one to learn the process of activism, which will foster and ensure nursing, has a strong, articulate voice to enhance the image of nursing. (Cohen, 1992) As students, even without the refined voice, participation will allow for input to be made in nursing education that will change the way we are educated. The student perspective is integral to the education process. (Thornton & Chapman, 2000).

Be it resolved,

That the CNSA believes that Professional time should have academic credit.

Be it further resolved,

That CNSA actively lobby nursing schools and nursing education organizations promoting this policy.

Be it further resolved,

Those conference directors will provide a list of attendants to the regional director. The regional directors will be responsible for writing a letter following national and regional conferences to the dean or director of each school with a description of the conference and a list of the students from the school who attended.

References

Bedard, D. & Dupette, A. (1998) Nurses’ professional self-concept. Canadian Nurse, 94, (6) p. 43-45.

Bright, K. (1992) The professional self-concepts of nursing undergraduates and their perceptions of influential forces. Journal of Nursing Education, 31, (3) p. 121-125.

Cohen, L. (1992). Power and change in Health Care: Challenge for nursing. Journal of Nursing Education.(31) 3. Pp. 113-116.

Coulon, L., Mok, M., Krause, K. & Anderson, M. (1996) The pursuit of excellence in nursing care: what does it mean? Journal of Advanced Nursing, 24, (4) p. 817-826.

Greenawalt, W. (1996) Professional socialization of baccalaureate nursing students: a study of the meaning of selected concepts related to professionalism. Doctoral Dissertation: Kent State University.

Krichbaum, K. (1997). Focuses on the teaching of leadership to student nurses. Creative Nursing, 3, (2). p. 12-16.

Lu, K. & Chiou, S. (1998) Professional commitment of nursing students. Nursing Research, 6, (2) p. 109-20.

Maslow, A. (1954). Motivation and personality. New York: Harper & Row.

Reutter, L., Field, P., Campbell, I. & Day, R. (1997) Socialization into nursing: Nursing students as learners. Journal of Nursing Education, 36, (4) p. 149-155.

Richardson, S., Valentine, P., Wood, M. & Godkin, D. (1994) Leadership: A nursing perspective. Canadian Journal of Nursing Research, 26, (4) p. 82-95.

Thornton, R. & Chapman, H. (2000) Student voice in curriculum making. Journal of Nursing Education,39, (3) 124-131.