Special Traditions Transforming Traditions in Nursing | Silver Mice and Modems | Convocation 2005
The Stethoscope Ceremony  A nursing tradition has been reborn at MUSC. It rekindles the fire that was originally lit by the lamp of Florence Nightingale by transforming the honor of nursing’s traditional “Capping Ceremony” to a more contemporary and equally important event. Through a collaborative effort among the nurses of the College of Nursing; the Medical University Hospital; and Sigma Theta Tau International, Gamma Omicron At-Large Chapter; the baccalaureate students are recognized by the new tradition of a “Stethoscope Ceremony.”
Most nursing faculty fondly remember the importance of their own “Capping Ceremony” -- a time of recognition and reflection on the paths they were pursing in their chosen career. Yet times and norms have changed, and nurses stopped wearing their caps years ago. Sadly, a ceremony celebrating this academic and professional milestone also stopped, as nurses became focused on trying to meet the demands of their stressful work and school environments. In a renewal of these values and this rite of passage, the MUSC faculty decided to use the power of the stethoscope and words from their colleagues to connote this same tradition of welcoming students into the family of nursing. The campus chapel, with candles flickering and organ music softly playing in the background, captures the air of expectancy among students, families and faculty. In a formal ceremony, the entering baccalaureate students are presented with a stethoscope as a tangible tool of their profession and listen to words of inspiration about the career they have chosen for their life’s work. And so a new tradition has been born. “For those of you beginning your nursing studies, I hope you will remember the pride and excitement you feel tonight each and every time you use this stethoscope. Above all, may you always remember this evening as your faculty remember their own Capping Ceremony, and may it remind you of those nurses and colleagues who nourished your learning, challenged your understandings, and illuminated your way.” - Dean Gail Stuart The 2006 Stethoscope Ceremony is available as a podcast.
Click Here Stethoscope Ceremoney: Words of Encouragement and Advice from Current Accelerated BSN Students Katie Sellars, Class of May 2006: It seems like such a short time ago that I was receiving my first stethoscope and beginning my education in nursing. Initially, I prepared myself for a 16 month program that would be a mere supplement to my BS in Biology and a means to a career. However, over the past year, I have learned that becoming a nurse is much more than a job. To become a nurse is to make a commitment to provide care for your patients and their families on a daily basis. In fact, it is almost like getting married as the vows you make to a loved one are similar to those ideals you will uphold when interacting with your patients. For better or for worse…. Some patients you will encounter will be on the recovery side of their illness and sadly others will be fighting to hang on. Regardless the continuity of care is the same. In sickness and in health…. While a majority of your 16 months is spent in inpatient units dealing with the ill, there is nothing quite as amazing as standing beside a new mother who gives birth and then holds her newborn for the first time. For richer or for poorer…….I have learned that a hospital gown makes everyone look the same, kind of along the same lines as attending a private school. You will learn that caring for the individual is really all that matters, never their socioeconomic status. Yet, working with those of a lower economic status does provide a chance to really make an impact when working with discharge planners and social workers. Until discharge do you part…..Look forward to every experience you encounter along the way as the knowledge and skills you attain in the next few months will serve as the foundation for the knowledge and skills you will possess once you are working as an RN. Consider what each patient has to offer and push yourself to tackle obstacles regarding their care…..because believe me, no two patients are the same and drawing blood really isn’t that bad. And most of all enjoy what you are doing and smile. You will see once you are on the floor that there are many good nurses and few exceptional nurses. The difference for me often involves a kind word, a smile, and the fact that some nurses exude their love for the profession in every patient interaction. I would encourage each of you to love your profession, and the joy will show through you and touch the lives of your patients in a way that you will see and find fulfilling and encouraging. You have a lot to look forward to and I wish you all the best of luck.
Marco Villegas, Student Government President, Class of May 2006: It is my great priviledge to greet all of you here for the Stethoscope Ceremony here at the Medical University of South Carolina. First I would like to express my gratitude to the faculty and staff for their support in preparation for this ceremony. Thank you for your continued efforts to keep this wonderful tradition alive here at the university. Over the next four semesters, you will be taught by some of the top nurses in this state. They each have contributed to nursing in a way that has earned them individual recognition in their respective field, and by national associations such as Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing. The passion generated by these faculty members will be evident in their lectures, and along your academic pathways. You will be exposed to different realms of nursing that you may not be aware of; all of which is in preparation for your contribution to the field of nursing. In a very short time you will stand on your own as independent, well rounded, practicing nurses. The next semester one of you will be standing here behind this podium charged to deliver a welcoming speech to the next incoming class. You will be a fountain of knowledge to the next class. I can say that I was initially at a loss for what I was going to talk to you about today. Then I began to reminisce about my stethoscope ceremony eight months ago; where I sat and listened to the previous SGA president deliver his speech to my class. Today however, this ceremony will symbolize your first step towards your careers in healthcare as nurses, practioners, teachers, advocates, and so on. Today also symbolizes your first day of endless education for once you are licensed and practicing, it will be imperative for you to be innovators, keep up with the new research findings, and continue your education. As a student I can share my experiences while here at the College of Nursing. Perhaps the most fundamental of lessons I learned is that the goal of this program is not to graduate 4.0 students, but to graduate knowledgeable, competent nurses, able to utilize the knowledge passed forth by faculty. This may seem somewhat foreign to you right now, but when you enter a patient’s room to perform your assessment, start an IV, administer medications, ascultate lung sounds, and listen to the heart with your stethoscope, I can assure you that it is highly unlikely the patient is going to ask you “what was your GPA in college?” To the patient you are a wealth of knowledge that he/she may not possess. That is why it is essential that you not only learn the material for the tests, but retain the information, because as a nurse you will need this knowledge to care for your patients, and advocate for them when needed. The classes you will be taking are both challenging and rewarding. Unlike other programs here at the university, you will be exposed to direct patient care from the beginning of your academic career. Take advantage of this opportunity to practice your skills under the supervision of a veteran nurse. The purpose of the clinicals are to reinforce the material you learn in class. Also, you will learn some things not taught in class. I call these lessons “experiences”, some may be welcomed and others will not. These experiences will be a great asset to you, because similar scenarios may present themselves to you in the near future. Experiences will teach you what to do and what not to do. I can recall the experiences I’ve acquired here, and I can tell you that I personally feel capable of handling a future situation correctly and safely. As a student you will experience the most intimate of personal circumstances. You will share in a patient’s most vulnerable moments. Not only is it important to interact with tact and confidence, it is important to know your boundaries. We have a natural instinct to calm, relax, and stabilize people in distress without the fear of overstepping bounds. As a student nurse you will learn the peaks and valleys of our field. Sometimes you may have a case that is so emotionally draining that you may end up taking it home with you. The practice of nursing will teach you how to professionally distance yourself from your patients. This may be one of the most difficult lessons to learn, but nonetheless vital to your education. I’m sure by now you may feel an overwhelming weight being slung over your shoulders. Think of it in this light, only sixteen more months to go. Many of you have asked if this program is as difficult as you have heard. The truth is it depends. Some of you may find this program easy, relatively challenging; others may find it the most difficult program in your college experience. You get what you put into it, but most of all, the knowledge you gain from here will be used in your practice. Yes, this program demands much of your time, yes, the program is stressful not only to you, but to the many other people in your life. Recognize that this program affects everyone that is actively involved in your life. You may need strong support systems, a shoulder to lean on, or an ear to pull. Forty-eight of you are entering this program, but this program affects more than just the forty-eight of you. Spouses, children, parents, boyfriends and girlfriends will be affected as well. I ask you to keep this in mind, for what affects you here will affect them as well. This program is challenging, that is why the forty-eight of you were selected out of the many applicants that apply each year. Your qualifications have brought you to this college and to this program, which in itself is a great accomplishment. Several other students are waiting at the door, aiming to achieve what you have already accomplished. Congratulate yourselves for making it into the Accelerated BSN program here at the Medical University of South Carolina. These are the first days of career as nurses.
Silver Mice and Modems  An important cohort of students includes those Registered Nurses who chose to attend the College’s online RN-BSN and RN-MSN degree programs. This is an important rite of passage for these dedicated women and men, and so the College celebrates their achievement through what is affectionately called the “Mouse Ceremony.” While these students do their learning entirely online, they are invited to Charleston for their orientation, and at this time they receive a different symbol of their journey in nursing. Each student is presented with an MUSC engraved silver mouse to help them navigate their online work and their future career paths. At MUSC, it is clear that transforming traditions in nursing can take different forms and contexts, but the outcome is to celebrate that MUSC nurses truly do change lives!
Convocation: December, 2005 
| | Elaine Amella, PhD, APRN, BD and student |  | |  |
Speaker: Elaine J. Amella, PhD, APRN, BD Dean Stuart, honored guests, faculty, family and friends, and members of the Class of December 2005, I am indeed grateful to be your convocation speaker today. I know many of the persons in this audience and I am indeed proud to be here on this day of their passage from student to graduate. Whether their degree is a Bachelor’s, Master’s or Doctorate of Nursing, all of these degrees represent a fulfillment of expectations and competencies set forth by our college and our profession. I would like to speak today about one expectation of our college and our profession - that as you go forward, you will continue to refine the Art and the Science of Nursing. Florence Nightingale described nursing as “the finest of the Fine Arts.” Yet, most people do not think of the Art of Nursing as an outgrowth of the Science of Nursing. The two ideas are split -- much the way the Mind and Body were split by the French philosopher, Descartes. Yet we now know that the Mind, Body, and Spirit are so closely intertwined that one cannot nurse one, without caring for the others. Such is the Art and Science of Nursing – they are linked together – so that one cannot practice the Art without a solid knowledge of the Science. Despite the popular belief that nursing is not a scientific endeavor, but one based on training, tasks and intuition, the best of nursing has been based on Science for 170 years. While the Age of Enlightenment influenced many areas of science, it wasn’t until the 1830’s that nursing moved from being an unorganized set of traditions to an intellectual pursuit. At this time, a new movement came into being at Kaiserworth in Germany and extended to Florence Nightingale’s teaching in Britain. -- Ms. Nightingale is widely recognized as the first nurse researcher. It was through her critical examination of the sanitary conditions in the Crimean War and her statistical documentation of the deaths and disease in that war, that through Nursing Science -- she was able to change the wartime mortality rate from hospitalization alone from 40% to 2%! Another early nurse researcher was Isabel M. Stewart, who while she was at Teacher’s College at Columbia University, attempted to classify nursing and non-nursing activities. While Ms. Stewart faced much opposition, she believed students should receive a research orientation and involved them in projects that needed investigation. Thus in modern nursing, research holds a pivotal position and is one of the pillars that differentiates baccalaureate-prepared nurses from associate and diploma nurses. It is this tradition of scientific inquiry that all of today’s graduates share. The Science of Nursing speaks to moving actions beyond tasks to practice based on evidence. While many people believe that nurses intuitively know what to do to comfort or heal the sick, and that this is the Art of Nursing, this intuition is really a series of small, yet critical pieces of information that the professional nurse knows how to assess, analyze and synthesize into deliberate action. It is the critical reflection on worrisome incidents and the research that results from a purposeful investigation - that pushes the Science of Nursing forward. Our graduates today have learned the wisdom of using the best information possible to inform and change their practice. I challenge them -- to keep using a system of exploration as their practice changes, because the one thing we all surely know is that practice will change! Helen Keller said, “ Life is either a daring adventure or nothing. To keep our faces toward change and behave like free sprits in the presence of fate is strength undefeatable.” Today, four nurses have earned the Doctor of Philosophy, the highest degree any university can award. Because they kept their faces toward change and kept their spirit free, they were able to reflect on the incidents in their practice to find an answer to tough questions. I’d like to share a bit of their journey with you. Dr. Cynthia Allen, an experienced family nurse practitioner, was perplexed by the problem of poor nutrition in babies and toddlers, which can be complicated by inadequate parenting. She looked at hospital records for these undernourished babies and found that indeed, those mothers who had few or no prenatal visits were more likely to have children with the problem of failure-to-thrive. We now potentially have a way to look for this problem ahead of time in children and do something about it. Dr. Phyllis Bonham, a nationally recognized expert in the area of wound and skin care, questioned if a test that determines arterial blood flow in the feet and ankles, and is routinely performed in clinics across the country, was being done the same by nurses and technicians, and if it produced the same results if done at the ankle or toe. Her findings will ensure that measurement of this vital information will be more accurate and better able predict who is at risk for these serious problems. Dr. Beverly Bradley, a very experienced pediatric nurse and teacher, was aware that school age children whose parents were seriously ill also suffered; an idea that makes intuitive sense, -- but that had not been tested among children of women who were being treated for breast cancer. She found that support of family and friend was not just a kind act, but critical to these children’s ability to maintain good mental and physical health - laying the groundwork for treatments that address the entire family’s health needs. In this time of concern about unequal medical treatment of minority groups, Dr. Charles Hossler, a family nurse practitioner and a teacher of some of the graduates in this class today, asked a critical health policy question: How does who pays for health care influence the kind of care given to African Americans with diabetes? Dr. Hossler found that no matter what type of insurance people had, they all still received the recommended number of diabetic foot exams, blood pressure monitoring, and other lab tests -- a finding that shows some of the disparities in health care may be closing. As you can probably tell, I am very proud of these four graduates as they exemplify the best in all our graduates today; they all know that good nursing requires good science. Whatever your level of exposure to science in your Bachelor’s, Master’s, or Doctoral program, you know that this is a deliberate process, not left to chance. It requires critical thinking, perceptive observation, purposeful investigation, and thorough evaluation. You need to keep pushing the Science of Nursing forward – we are depending on you! Although you’re graduating today, your inquiry does not end. Whether it’s reducing malnutrition in infants or supporting children in troubled times, reducing healthcare disparities or finding the right way to measure physiological processes, you will be a part of the future of Nursing Science. Unlike the technical nurse who focuses on “mechanical details and the dexterity of performance”, you must, as Isabel Stewart stated, cultivate “the creative imagination, the sensitive spirit, and the intelligent understanding lying [behind] these techniques and skills.” You must keep your face toward change, reflect on all you observe, assume nothing, look for the best evidence, and try to make the Art of Nursing stronger by improving the Science. As Carl Sagan stated, “somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.” --- To improve the quality of care and the quality of life of individuals, families, and communities, I CHALLENGE YOU --- GO OUT AND FIND IT! Thank you. |
