Our profession has built a great reputation and we have consistently ranked at the top of the list as “most trusted.” I’m not sure they had the “rear wiping” in mind, but rather, I believe it is because nurses hold us all when we cry.
Now, I look at the community around me and say “What happened?”
What happened to the dying urban center where I first kicked a soccer ball, ate a frozen custard cone, and fell on my bike? This community has had its share of division before I was born, although despite what some say, the effects of poverty are color blind.
This became all too clear to me when I spoke with a childhood friend about people I had almost forgotten. It seems most have been through (or are still in) the prison system.
Here’s one thing I can tell you about poverty. Idle hands do young people the most damage. Escaping the petulant existence with mind-altering substances isn’t a morally bankrupt decision; it is a common way of life.
So what can a nurse do?
That’s the big question. Although I do not have all the answers, I have one that I feel deeply and passionately about.
When Gandhi said, “Be the change you wish to see in the world,” I cried. How simple an answer and how true the words?
With many State budget cuts looming, our communities already in a decline, young people (and old) not possessing basic health literacy, I hope you find the time to help.
It’s up to us to heal the nation, one community at a time.
- April
To discuss ways to help make a difference, post here in the comment section or join the Nurse Circle on Facebook, Linkedin, or Twitter hashtag #RNchat.
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April lives in Milwaukee and is an RN member of the Clear Medical Network who blogs at nurseinwi.blogspot.com and can be followed @PsychNurseinWI on twitter.
Tags: children, Community, Inner City, Nursing
March 20, 2011 at 12:15 pm
April, what a heart warming and clear call to action!
Thanks for sharing with the community.