“This is a collective effort. Each player has a unique role to play. You must discover how you can contribute to the big picture, and quickly get to work.”
One man can not do it all alone, it’s not a “solo championship”.
One community does not have all the intelligence & energy to do it.
We must make up our minds to embrace the philosophy of unity if we want the dreams that we have for the profession to come to pass.
We will need the bright minds of nurse academics & scholars; the intuitive minds of nurse entrepreneurs will be required; nurse innovators & creators; nurses with political wit & in government; nursing writers & journalists; you just name it.
It’s a cocktail of brilliant souls, a communion of men & women who think alike.
There is no space for the weak & for those who do not have the courage or believe in what they are capable of doing.
What Nursing Must Become…
What can we say about community?
Where everyone is free to express themselves; where creativity knows no boundaries; where we all interact as if we were all in an ecosystem a biosphere made up of a species of professionals determined to uphold the highest standards of leadership, innovation & community.
Lately, I got the opportunity to interact with the vision bearers of a Nursing Brand that is bringing a whole new kind of vibe into the community of Nurses worldwide. And I must confess, I was excited, super excited, at the passion & enthusiasm exuded by this team of passionate leaders.
These are the kind of hearts that we need to handle the steering of “Nursing Community” in this revolutionary era the profession is going through; the stage we are in is the formative phase of a new future.
The identity that we give her now, is what she will take into the future, and it is how people of the world will interact with her [we are molding, forging, baking, constructing, developing another future of Nursing. History is unfolding right before our eyes].
You need no Prophet or Sorcerer or Soothsayer to tell you that what we are either enjoying or suffering today is chiefly due to the identity given to the profession by our founding fathers some centuries or more ago.
Their efforts have culminated into what we call nursing today. And believe it, those were sincere efforts, whether those ideas hurt us today, they were only influenced by the times. If only they could see the future, they would not have incorporated certain cultures into the system of nursing practice.
But today, we are in another defining season for our profession [and this kind of season does not come all the time; we are allowed to correct the wrongs, and make sure the future is perfect].
An era of huge enlightenment. Nurses have started to understand that they can be and do much more.
They are breaking out of the mental boundaries that have held them bound for so long.
Friends, the biggest problem is always in the mind. The environment & culture just contribute a little to the whole struggle for freedom.
A nurse who has a faulty mindset [due to the kind of culture that he/she absorbs] will find it difficult to ascend even if they find themselves in a “good environment” that has all they need if they don’t take bold steps to break that mindset.
And I must tell you, Nurses all over the world are suffering from the same pandemic.
It’s just more pronounced in some regions than in others. Some countries have done a really good job in empowering their nurses, but that does not mean that every nurse in that region understands the power that they have.
I often hear the cries of some nurses here in Nigeria who are desperate about leaving the country because they want an enabling environment that allows them to grow & develop as professionals.
It’s a noble cry and a true one. But if they do not understand certain things they will travel out and be surprised that they will meet much of what they are running away from here in disguised and even more powerful form over there — well, having a tent to sleep in at the gate of heaven is better than owning the biggest mansion in hell.
A Massive Revolution
Recently, a wonderful event was held on the African continent that brought many bright minds in the Nursing Community worldwide together, to share, connect, interact & learn, the African Nurse: Breaking Boundaries conference.
An event like this one is the kind of catalyst we need as a professional community to break forth. And there are several Nursing Communities [mainly spearheaded by private bodies of highly charged nursing professionals] here in Africa that have energy that can never be caged.
Minds bursting and brimming with so many ideas, strategies & plans, ready to invade the world with their version of what they believe nursing must be.
What events like these do for nurses, is to provide them with an ecosystem that makes it possible for their dreams & visions to germinate into green forests that can and will contribute to every other aspect of human society.
That’s a dream that is already crystalizing before us as a generation tasked with the sacred duty of guarding the future of our dear profession. It’s our destiny, and we must all rise to the task. I see it as serious business. Something to “fight in” and “fight for”.
I don’t know how you see it, but for me, I am passionate about it.
If we approach this adventure with enough soul, we will win [it will not be easy], but if we decide to come before it with so much apathy & an attitude that can not douse the flames of candlelight, then we will be knocked down and out of the game.
Altitude Africa: An Ecosystem
Right now, there is a massive volcanic eruption of creative & innovative ideas rocking the landscape of nursing on the African continent.
Nurses are aggressively breaking out of age-long mental shackles that have imprisoned their creative & leadership abilities for decades!
They are crawling out of dark tunnels & cultural caves that have shielded them from the light of innovation, creativity & leadership.
Some of the older nurses are somewhat amazed, and sometimes feel intimidated by this paradigm shift.
A host of them still tenaciously hold on to antiquated opinions that have done us no good, while a few are wise enough to understand the times, and quickly latch on to these innovative waves, and ride it on into the bright future – intelligently learning from the new culture, and wittily combining their own experiences & exposures to help the new folks get stronger, preserving for themselves a space in this new kingdom.
But to those who are still willing to live in the past, they can’t kick against the prick, with time they and their ideas will gradually become obsolete.
There is no milquetoast here. I am a writer, tasked with the duty of bringing readers truth as it is, though this essay was intended to be a kind of door that ushers the world into the partnership that we at Care City Nigeria are building with Nursingecosystem, I can not help but divert a little bit, to talk about other things, which are related, forgive my distraction.
On The Flight…
The flight idea that Nursingecosystem came up with is not only genius but novel in nature. If you are a regular visitor or an active member of the LinkedIn platform, you would have come across it. Where a fanciful & attractive plane ticket bears the name of a Nurse who is doing something creative & innovative for the nursing profession.
It’s not only genius & novel, but it’s also highly symbolic [and somewhat prophetic; as it is capturing the future of nursing], it is telling us of the reality that we are already living in as a profession, that our place belongs up there, and not down there.
In the air, there are no boundaries. The landscape is the cloud, and the air is our home.
It’s not just the “Nursing Field”, you can feel alone in that field, it’s an Ecosystem, where you are ever connected to an abundant supply of positive energy, pure inspiration & limitless possibilities.
Recently, we had a meeting, our team, with the Nursingecosystem team, headed by Carl, and it is what I call a natural meeting.
We had no agenda written down, no strict timing, we just came together to have some fun and talk about what we love doing. And I was allowed to learn from that interaction, as Carl took his time to tell us about what they are doing, while we also voiced what we do as a team, and it all kind of clicked.
They are in New York, Washington, Connecticut, while we are in Lagos, Nigeria, but we are thinking alike. We have the same goal, the same passion, the same desire, even though we exist in different time zones; eat different food, and interact with an entirely different culture, we are one; in the heart; in our souls.
And we are combining efforts; to walk & work together; to build & strive together; to do all that it takes to make sure that a perfect nursing ecosystem is established on the African continent, for the greater good of the global nursing community.
It’s all for the good of the nursing world. I reiterate that truth.
We are one, but we all have separate & distinct callings. It makes the work easier if every man recognizes what they are called to do.
I have found mine, you must find yours. We have found ours, and if you want to join us, building yourself, growing & developing towards self-discovery & mastery, you are free to join us, send us a message here, and you will hear from us.
We are excited to officially announce our partnership with the Nursingecosystem [A Brand Branch of Bloodless Medicine & Surgery]. A bond that we believe will last into the future. A union that we know will be a foundation for the development of many creative ideas that are aching for expression.
Our focus is Africa. But the fight is for the whole body & the flight is towards greater heights.
Join this flight, let’s take this to greater heights!
Welcome to the future.
Selected Reads
12 Uncommon Traits of Highly Effective Nursing Career Coaches/Mentors: How To Stand Out
On Nursing Innovation: The Power of Community
Nurse-led Hospital Administration
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