Dear Colleagues,
What a wonderful time of the year—spring is in full swing, and many of us are planning for summertime events. As we move into summer, I invite you to take a few minutes to reflect on nurse practitioners (NPs) in the world of women’s health who have been an inspiration to you and others. With its Inspiration in Women’s Health Awards, NPWH gives us an opportunity to recognize and celebrate NPs who have inspired us. These awards will be presented at our 21st Annual NPWH PremierWomen’s Healthcare Conference, which will take place in San Antonio, Texas, on October 10-13, 2018.
What exactly is inspiration? For some, it is a feeling of enthusiasm that drives them to set and achieve a new goal. For others, it is a burst of imagination that leads them to develop creative ideas for achieving that goal. For still others, it is almost a magical force that propels them to work harder, climb higher, dream bigger. Is there a special NP who has inspired your enthusiasm, your imagination, and/or your perseverance in achieving your goal? It can be as simple as instilling in you a sense of pride, importance, and accomplishment in what you do every day in your practice. Or it can be as complex as motivating you to expand your horizons and leave your comfort zone behind.
Most of you can probably identify at least one NP who has been an inspiration to you and others in the sphere of women’s health. How, when, and where did you encounter this NP? This person may have been an instructor or preceptor who inspired you as a student, helped you envision yourself as a future NP, and acted as a role model or mentor. Or maybe this person is someone working right alongside you in your clinical setting—someone who is committed to putting patients first and striving to provide the very best care, often going that step above and beyond what is required. Or maybe this person is someone you’ve met once or twice or someone you’ve just read about. This person may be an NP who has exemplified advocacy for women’s healthcare with a vulnerable population and has inspired you to change how you think and practice. Or perhaps this NP has been influential in moving health policy forward and has motivated you to become more active in this domain. Or maybe this NP’s research in women’s health has inspired you to conduct studies of your own or change your clinical practice in meaningful ways. Or perhaps you are inspired by an NP entrepreneur who has developed an exemplary private or group practice.
Inspiration takes many shapes beyond these examples. It is certainly in the eyes of the beholder. If an individual has inspired you, and if you’d like this person to be honored at a national level, I invite you to nominate this special and deserving NP for an Inspiration in Women’s Health Award. It is a wonderful way to show your appreciation for this individual’s dedication, achievements, and contributions to women’s healthcare and advanced practice nursing. Please visit our NPWH website for more information. The deadline for nominations is Monday, July 2, 2018.
I do have one more thought about inspiration. Per-haps a second purpose of the Inspiration in Women’s Health Award is to provoke reflection on how each of us can be inspirational. We all have so much passion for what we do in women’s health. I see it whenever I have an opportunity to interact with NPs and NP students. When did you first know you had that passion? What keeps it going? Aim to share your passion in ways that will inspire others to create their own vision, set their own goals, and achieve excellence so that women have access to the very best healthcare provided by NPs.
Beth Kelsey, EdD, APRN, WHNP-BC, FAANP