Developing Nursing's Future Leaders

Nursing BC, Oct 2004 by Priest, Alicia

Nursing students who volunteer as RNABC student representatives see their involvement in the Student Representative Program as a stepping stone to becoming future leaders in the nursing profession.

Cynthia Russell knows all about the ups and downs of student life. A third-year University of Victoria nursing student, Russell can tell you about demanding academic workloads, crushing financial debt and constant shortages of free time. These days, what student couldn't?

However, Russell can also tell you about a resource that's available to all nursing students in British Columbia, but which other students don't have. It's called the RNABC Student Representative Program and it's present in all 16 schools of nursing in B.C.

RNABC's Student Representative Program enables nursing students to take a leadership role and become peer resources and role models for their colleagues. Student representatives promote good nursing practice by providing information about RNABC programs and resources, and assisting other students to understand and use RNABC's Standards for Registered Nursing Practice in British Columbia.

Those who volunteer as student representatives, however, get as well as give. Russell, who's been a student representative since she began her studies at the University of Victoria School of Nursing, sees RNABC's Student Representative Program as an opportunity for her to receive professional development, be involved in her professional organization and network with fellow nursing students. It also, she says, supplies generous quantities of motivation and inspiration - valuable qualities in a beleaguered student's world.

"I like to be involved in more than just the course work," Russell says. "School work is sometimes just a slog, just darn hard work . . . Sometimes when you're doing the course work, you get tunnel vision about what it's all about. But being a rep helps me see the big picture. It exposes me to registered nurses who have been there, done that, and it provides me with mentors. I really love an opportunity to be involved in the profession rather than just focus on the course work."

Paulina Niechcial, a second-year student nurse at Camosun College in Victoria, became an RNABC student representative for several reasons. Not only did she want to learn more about what was happening in her chosen field, but she wanted to discover as much as she could about her professional organization.

"I also wanted to strengthen my communication and leadership skills," Niechcial says, "I definitely see myself as being some kind of nurse leader in the future."

Paula Leweke couldn't agree more. A faculty liaison at Camosun College, Leweke says she admires those who volunteer to be in RNABC's Student Representative Program. Camosun College and the University of Victoria share an RNABC Student Representative Program as students study five semesters at Camosun and three semesters at the University of Victoria in order to complete their degree in nursing.

"Reps are highly motivated, really ambitious students with good interpersonal skills and are well-rounded," Leweke says. "I consider them to be future leaders of nursing."

Because student representatives represent RNABC, they must become familiar with how the organization works, what it means for registered nurses to be in a self-regulating profession, and how RNABC's Standards for Registered Nursing Practice relate to their course work and to client care. For instance, an issue involving the Standards arose last year. When students were approached by a doctor who wanted to hire them to administer a flu vaccine, they discussed that request with Russell. She turned to her RNABC Regional Nursing Practice Advisor who referred her to the RNABC Standards for Registered Nursing Practice, which documented that while students may be qualified to perform certain tasks (i.e., they may have the knowledge and skill base), they must practise within their own level of competence (Standard 6: Self-regulation, Indicator 2). Furthermore, RNABC's guidelines for nursing students working as "nurses," which are available online at www.rnabc.bc.ca (search "students working"), stipulate that these students can only work on a unit, ward or program in which a registered nurse is present and readily available to provide clinical direction. So, although senior students have lots of competencies by their third and fourth years of education, the students recognized that fulfilling that doctor's request would entail going beyond their scope of practice.

Betty Tate, a University of Victoria faculty liaison for the RNABC Student Representative Program, meets once a month with all student representatives on campus. She sees many advantages to students participating in the program, including their access to a huge number of RNABC resources and an opportunity to see registered nursing in the context of a professional body.

"To be engaged in a professional organization is a way to influence change. That's where policy decisions are being made," Tate says. "If students are actively engaged in student life, they are likely to be actively engaged after they graduate."