Nursing students pledge career professionalism

First-year McMaster University nursing students made a public commitment to
professionalism in their nursing studies and practice on April 4 at the inaugural Level 1
Professionalism Pledge Ceremony for the McMaster Mohawk Conestoga Bachelor of
Science in Nursing (BScN) program.

Associate Dean of the School of Nursing (SON) Catherine Tompkins and Janet Landeen,
assistant dean of undergraduate nursing education programs, spoke to the crowd
about the importance of professionalism among student nurses and the significance of
the pledge.

“You, as nursing students, are all developing members of our profession,” said
Tompkins, adding that nursing is one of the most trusted professions in society. “Trust
doesn't just happen; it develops over time because of what we see in the other person
and how we react. People trust nurses because they work to develop that trust and we
must always work to keep that trust.”

Landeen added that becoming a professional means something more than attending
university, and that “We talk about becoming a nurse and a set of expected behaviours
that goes along with that.”

The SON's Professionalism Task Force has worked for the past two years to create the
pledge ceremony with the goal to embed student commitment in the core values of
nursing into the program. Landeen said that after their first year, student nurses have
had time to explore nursing and what it means to be a nurse, so it is a fitting time to
declare their commitment.

The pledge enables each student to legitimize their role as a learner in a professional
program, and represents entry into the nursing profession and their lifelong
commitment to uphold the standards and values of the profession, such as integrity,
honesty, respectfulness and accountability. Tompkins explained that students will be
increasingly asked to portray these values as part of their profession and as they
continue their studies.

Standing and reciting the pledge together, 138 students agreed to “demonstrate the
professional behaviours reflective of a learner committed to developing myself as a
professional nurse within the global community.”

First-year students Lindsay Howitt and Evita Lewis were asked to speak at the event
because they “epitomize professional behaviours,” said Tracey Jewiss, assistant
professor in the SON and event organizer.

“The ability to help those in need without a second thought, without a shadow of a
doubt, is nursing,” said Howitt.

Lewis said: “You are here today because you felt a calling to nursing. You felt a calling
towards transforming care, transforming lives, transforming health care, and
transforming nursing as a whole. Nursing is care that goes beyond the norm because it
includes advocating, reassuring, and preventing illness.”

To conclude the ceremony, each student was given a crest as a symbol of their
commitment. Developed in collaboration with Mohawk and Conestoga Colleges, it is
made up of the colours of all three sites, portrays learning in the centre, represents
unity among its members, and reflects the nursing school's Kaleidoscope Curriculum.

The Level 1 Pledge Ceremony will take place at the Conestoga and Mohawk sites on
April 5.