I’ve been very blessed in my professional career due, in large part, to the mentors and coaches I’ve had along the way. During my initial training and then later as an academic colleague, faculty members Sandra Gottschalk, Beryl Dinges and Michele Unrein provided encouragement and guidance, accepting no less than the very best I could do. Each of these leaders instilled a love of the nursing profession in me and sparked my interest in nursing leadership.

Robin’s column this month speaks to the critical role nurses play in legislation impacting health care access and cost, the workplace, and workforce issues. For many years AMSN has had a legislative team of volunteers addressing legislative issues of importance to medical-surgical nurses. They’ve written position statements on topics relevant to med-surg nurses, they have signed on to letters from other nursing organizations and they tried to stay abreast of policy and legislative activities.

I recently reflected on the amazing journey I’ve experienced throughout my nursing career. One of the many highlights was my experience as a participant in the Nurse in Washington Internship (NIWI) program sponsored by the Nursing Organizations Alliance.

The International Council of Nurses (ICN) Congress was an inspirational and educational conference attended by thousands of nurses from around the world. It certainly was enlightening to recognize that nurses around the world face some collective opportunities and challenges. As you read in President Robin Hertel’s ‘Robin’s Nest’, one focus of the conference was the importance of the social determinants of health (SDOH) in managing the health of our patients.

I recently attended the International Council of Nurses Congress Conference, held in Singapore this month. It was a gathering of more than 5,000 nurses from over 120 countries. Discussions and poster presentations over four days involved many of the issues nurses face on a daily basis, including safe staffing, workplace safety, quality, and the healthcare model.

In May, AMSN and MSNCB CEO Terri Hinkley, EdD, MBA, BScN, RN received her Doctorate in Human and Organizational Learning from George Washington University. The Human & Organizational Learning curriculum focuses on organizational issues such as strategic change, transformational leadership, individual and group learning processes, organizational development, and global and international issues. The degree helped Hinkley to develop a more critical lens with which to see the nursing community and its issues and challenges.

Dictionary.com defines pursuit as: the act of pursuing; an effort to secure or attain a goal; a quest; and any occupation, pastime, or the like in which a person is engaged regularly or customarily. They define excellence as the fact or state of excelling. The pursuit of excellence in nursing is indeed a quest that is accomplished by thoughtfully looking at ones environment and then strategically thinking about how to make a positive difference.

AMSN continues to work tirelessly to bring value to our members and customers. As you’ve likely seen, we’ve rolled out podcasts, videos and new webinars. We’re building new online learning courses in behavioral health for medical-surgical nurses, significantly increased our advocacy and legislative activities and continue to explore ways we can support you as you navigate the increasingly complex and rapidly-changing work environment.

June has had a long history of celebrations with weddings and graduations; of freedom with the celebration of Juneteenth; and of personal and social rights with the celebration of Pride month. Unfortunately, nursing hasn’t always celebrated the differences that make us stronger as a profession. We have, on occasion, denied our colleagues the freedom to be themselves in the practice setting and failed to acknowledge the personal and social rights of the members of our profession.

Robin Hertel, AMSN President, spoke of community in her ‘Robin’s Nest’ message in this newsletter. Community likely means something slightly different to all of us, but one thing community will have in common for all of us is that it invokes a sense of belonging. Whether geographical, spiritual, familial or professional, community is where we find expertise, wisdom and support from people that we identify with. As we saw with Senator Walsh’s uncalled for comments, the nursing community immediately came together and rallied as one.