America United! #AmericaStrong: Make it happen!

One country, one people, one government 

By Leah Curtin, R.N., ScD (h) FAAN

Let’s expect more from our politicians—and each other. 

BY THE TIME this article is published (in American Nurse), it will be time to inaugurate President Joe Biden. 

Once upon a time, the new president—whether a Republican or a Democrat—made a nonpartisan inauguration speech. 

For the most part, they talked about what it means to be an American. Not a Republican or a Democrat, an American. 

One country. One people. One government. Re - publican and Democrat making all of us safe, all of us one. How did that happen? 

Most of us were raised on the “Golden Rule”: Do unto others what we would want done unto ourselves. It’s a good and a clear standard for a democracy of differences. Now, our “values” seem to be personal freedom, personal independence, and “my civil rights.” And in the middle of the COVID19 pandemic, that means nurses and doctors are worked beyond exhaustion. 

America itself never really wins anymore; political parties win—or lose. A set of political persuasions that insist “it’s my way or the highway.” In years past, we held to the Golden Rule, which seemed to give us process, civility, and balance. In the (hopefully temporary) absence of this grand old value, I propose a restatement of what we the people should expect from our politicians (and one another): 

• Being president does not make a person God. This also forbids idolatry, even of the self. No narcissists allowed. 

• Civil discourse and human respect are the underpinnings of democracy. When we destroy as a people what we say we value as a people by mocking, deriding, or dividing one American from another, we lay a curse that will destroy us all. 

• Keep being ‘presidential’ as a symbol of the republic. If we reduce the quality of the presidency to the level of entertainment, we substitute celebrity for genuine leadership. 

• Honor both sides of the aisle—Republican and Democrat. To develop national answers to serious questions, we must work together as fellow Americans with different perspectives and approaches to the same problems. 

• Thou shalt not kill the American spirit of inclusion. The U.S. Congress was created to bring order, reflection, and compromise between political forces, not to create situations in which one side wins and the other loses. 

• Thus, thou shalt not practice sexism, racism, xenophobia, or global exclusion. In an intercultural world, what counts is what we have in common, not how we differ. 

• Thou shalt not steal from the poor to give to the rich nationally or globally. Real democracy demands just and decent distribution of the basics of life. In the end, it’s the only thing that will strengthen our country. 

• Thou shalt not lie in tweets, advertisements, or administrative and congressional speeches. It is the highest treason done for the sake of the shortest ever triumph. 

• Thou shalt not insult thy neighbor. The purpose of politics is to give all voices and insights a chance to be heard. To aim insults at another, especially a public servant, only loosens the bonds between us. 

• Thou shalt not take for yourself what rightfully belongs to the other. Embezzlement, lying, fraud, tax evasion, and vandalism are all wrong. No exceptions. 

From where I stand, it seems that the Golden Rule was so much simpler. At least we were less likely to hear the crude, rude, and lewd comments that have become part and parcel of our political language. 

Leah Curtin, RN, ScD(h), FAAN Executive Editor, Professional Outreach American Nurse Journal

Nurses call to care for migrants- an ethical imperative

This echo nursing opinion by Leah Curtin was published in American Nurse Today. 

From Where I Stand on the last page opinion column:  

Must nurses care for migrants?

To deny basic human right to any person for any reason is ipso facto* unethical!

Basic human rights apply to everyone.

There seems to be much controversy about giving healthcare to "undocumented" immigrants- or even "documented" ones. In fact, some people believe that anyone who doesn't have health insurance has no right to healthcare. According to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, they are wrong. And what's even worse is when a government not only doesn't uphold the right but actually violates it.  For example, the treatment of migrant children on the U.S. southern border is a gross violation of these children's basic rights on several levels.  Period. Full stop. It isn't a matter of politics or party. It's a matter of basic human rights. Nothing that their parents do or fail to do has any bearing on their rights as human beings.

How dare I say such a think?  Let's go back to the United Nations' Universal Declaration of Human Rights, of which the United States is a signatory. What follows comes directly from the declaration:

"Article 1:  All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.  They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood."

"Article 2:  Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, color, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.  Furthermore, no distinction shalt be made on the basis of the political jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty."

"Article 25: Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical are and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control. Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection."

Perhaps it is worth the time to refresh our understanding about human rights. Human rights are just claims to the fulfillment of fundamental, universal human needs. They don't depend on any legal jurisdiction, but they do need to be claimed, but you aren't less human if they're violated. No one can live a full human life, without them and in some cases they can't live at all without them.  

Human rights can be violated, but they don't go away because they're violated.  In act, their violation demands retribution. They don't disappear when one crosses state or national boundaries- whether or not that state or nation recognizes and protects them in their existing jurisdictions.

So, if you want to know if nurses have an ethical obligation to care for undocumented immigrants, the answer is a resounding "yes". To refuse to care for them is, ipso facto, unethical.

By Leah Curtin, RN, ScD (h), FAAN
Executive Editor, Professional Outreach
American Nurse Today

*ipso facto: Latin meaning "by the very fact".

Hillary Clinton quote:  "....human rights are women's rights, and women's rights are human rights, once and for all...."

“I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me.” Matthew 25:35

Nursing compassion ~ learning with knowledge and experience

Compassion

Leah Curtin ScD(h), RN, FAAN, is Clinical Professor of Nursing at the University of Cincinnati College of Nursing and Health 

"Compassion: A nurse's primary virtue" was published in the July 2018, "American Nurse Today".

Strengthening compassion may help you avoid burnout.

Nurses, we’re told, are fundamentally compassionate people. In fact, nurse burnout could be defined as the loss of compassion. So, it behooves us as nurses to explore what compassion is, how it differs from empathy and sympathy, and how to enhance it.
Compassion, empathy, and sympathy.

The etymology of compassion is Latin, and it means “co-suffering.” It involves feeling for another, and it’s considered a precursor to empathy, which is feeling what another feels. When you empathize, you share the suffering of another—an emotion that’s not especially helpful for nurses.

In nursing, compassion is active; our education and experience have provided us with the ability to relieve another’s suffering. It often confers the capacity for person-centered acts that relieve suffering. The difference between sympathy and compassion is that sympathy responds to suffering with sorrow and concern while compassion responds with warmth and care.

Compassion is more than a desire to alleviate another’s suffering, it involves the ability and the will to do so. Compassion can be broken down into four interrelated stages:
recognizing that there is suffering (cognitive)
being emotionally moved by that suffering (affective)
wanting to relieve that suffering (intentional)
having the ability and willingness to take action to relieve that suffering (motivational).

In short, compassion isn’t defined by what you feel for another but what you do about what you feel. Moreover, an act of compassion is defined by its helpfulness. That is, the efficacy of compassion can be defined by whether the action taken is of service or assistance to the one who’s suffering. Being of service or assistance doesn’t necessarily involve making things easier for the sufferer or even necessarily relieving his or her pain. It depends on the cause of the suffering, the person’s response to the suffering, and the personality of the sufferer. That’s why a compassionate nursing response is always person-centric.

Strengthen your compassion

Contrary to what many may believe, compassion is more like a muscle than an emotion; thus, as with any muscle, it can be strengthened with relevant exercises—or can deteriorate and atrophy. In other words, your capacity for compassion can expand, if you choose. Preliminary research from a variety of randomized controlled trials suggests that compassion can be enhanced through systematic training programs. For example:

• Meditate daily, even if only for a few minutes.
• Notice when compassion comes easily or spontaneously for you throughout the day.
• Start noticing suffering (your own and that of others) and allow yourself to be emotionally touched or moved by the suffering. 
• Awareness of the presence or absence of compassion can provide you with some valuable information.

To foster resilience, think about a hurtful event in a different way.
Be compassionate toward yourself. No empirical evidence exists to suggest that beating ourselves up changes our behavior.

Compassion, which is ranked as a great virtue in numerous philosophies and almost all major religious traditions, certainly is a virtue for all nurses—ranking in importance right next to knowledge and experience!











Leah Curtin, RN, ScD(h), FAAN
Executive Editor, Professional Outreach