Dr. M.K.C. Nair, Vice-Chancellor, Kerala University of Health Sciences, Thrissur,
Dr. Remla Beevi A., Director of Medical Education, Kerala,
Dr. Thomas Mathew, Principal, Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram,
Prof. Valsa K. Panicker, Registrar, Kerala Nurses and Midwives Council,
Dr. Latha R., Joint Director of Nursing Education, Kerala,
Prof. Nirmala L., Principal, Government College of Nursing, Thiruvananthapuram,
Dr. Jolly Jose, Vice-Principal, Government College of Nursing, Thiruvananthapuram,
Dear Graduands,
Teachers, Parents
Sahodaree Sahodaranmare
Sahodaree Sahodaranmaare,
Ellaavarkkum Ente Namaskaaram.
I am very happy to address this Convocation Ceremony at the Government College of Nursing, Thiruvananthapuram.
Let me at the outset, congratulate all the nursing professionals of the 41st and 42nd batches of Bsc Nursing and the 6th batch of Post Basic Nursing for having qualified to offer their services to the healthcare sector all over the world. I also partake in the joy and pride of the parents and teachers who have assembled here to attend this Convocation.
Usually, as Chancellor of the universities in Kerala, I am inclined to limit my participation to convocations conducted by universities and to very few medical colleges of high stature. However, as one who is fully convinced about the selfless service rendered by Keralite Nurses in our health sector all over the world, I felt it my duty to gladly accept the request from the Government College of Nursing.
Before I share some of my thoughts on the profession of Nursing, let me place on record, my sense of appreciation for the service being rendered by the Government College of Nursing, Thiruvananthapuram. As we all know, this institution was established in 1943 as a School of Nursing attached to the General Hospital in Thiruvananthapuram. It was upgraded as a College 1963 and currently, it is offering courses ranging from General Nursing cum Midwifery to Post Graduate and Ph.D programs and regularly contributing hundreds of professionals to the health sector all over the world. Considering the variety of educational programs offered under specialties like medical-surgical nursing, community health, gynecology, mental health, child health etc., I hope urgent steps for implementing departmentalization in this college would be taken soon.
As we all know, the process of healing initiated and popularized by Florence of Nightingale in 1860 had revolutionized nursing all over the world. Training in nursing became a part of health care and the involvement of many agencies and people in services related to nursing has increased over the years. You would recall that Mahatma Gandhi also had been involved in such activities during a war, while he was in South Africa. Gandhiji had raised an Ambulance Corps with over 1000 people and received training in caring for soldiers wounded in war. Therefore, as qualified nursing professionals, you should be proud that you are practicing a profession that inspired people like Gandhiji.
I would like to remind the young Nursing professionals who are receiving their degrees and diplomas that this Convocation marks only the beginning of a new phase in your life. If you think that a degree has fully equipped you to practice your profession, you could be wrong, because, you will be dealing with one of the most precious thing in the world, namely, human life. Besides, the technological advances and the knowledge explosion have brought tremendous changes to the profession of Nursing, which has moved from a mere career to a profession that responds to the progress of our times.
The profession of Nursing requires continuing education of the practitioners so that they can take informed and wise decisions. The updating of knowledge should not be limited to the medical sphere alone; instead, it must broaden to cover the technological, legal and ethical knowledge also. In Kerala, for instance, the Health Policy itself has undergone a transformation in the recent years and the concepts of Family and community Health centres and e-Health have become popular. For a nursing professional, success would depend on how well he or she internalizes the essence of such changes in the work environment.
Dedication to one’s work is very important in the profession of Nursing. You would perhaps recall the glowing homage paid by the entire world to Smt. Lini Puthussery, who lost her life while battling the Nipah virus in our State last year. Her sacrifice is something we as a people can never forget. While lauding her service, we also feel that it is high time we improved our medical research so that the work environment for nurses and other healthcare professionals would be much safer. I feel more people from the Nursing fraternity should come forward for higher studies leading to research in Nursing so that the professional hazards and issues faced by nursing staff could be avoided.
A person in nursing has many roles to play. Today, to address the holistic healthcare needs of people, the nursing professional is also required to be aware of the measures for restoring the emotional, social and spiritual well being of clients.
The role of a dedicated nurse extends beyond that of a care-giver, and requires one to be an educator who would explain concepts and facts about health and demonstrate procedures to others. The nurse must also be adept in understanding patient or client behaviour so that matters could be conveyed in the best manner.
Today, we hear a lot about the informed consent that we get from our patients and relatives in decisions related to medical care. Therefore, a nurse must be a good communicator with advocacy skills so that the clients are made aware of their human rights and their right to choose from available methods of treatment. We also have to make our nursing professionals properly aware of the systems and rules of organ donation, not because they would be involved in such matters, but because the nurse is one of the persons with whom patients and relatives communicate most.
Educators in Nursing have to devise more programmes for the enhancement of the knowledge levels of our nurses. It is true that there has been a great increase in the number of Nursing Colleges, but what we need is more facilities for the continuing higher education of Nurses serving in hospitals in Kerala. We also have to see the level of continuing education facilities offered to nurses in our private hospitals, which cater to nearly 60 percent of our people who seek medical help.
We are proud of our nurses dominating the health-care sector all over the world, though a degree in Nursing should not be seen only as a passport to a foreign employment. If we ensure better continuing education and training facilities for our nurses, it will benefit not just Kerala, but the entire world in terms of quality of services. I understand that a decent minimum salary has been fixed by the Government for qualified nurses in private hospitals and that some hospitals have implemented it. I really hope that all hospitals would follow this practice to ensure a dignified life for nurses.
I hope all the young professionals here would serve the world in the true spirit of medical and nursing ethics. I wish everyone a bright future through an enriching career in nursing.
Icompliment the organizers for conducting this programme in a befitting manner.
Ellavarkkum Ente Aashamsakal
Nanni
Jai Hind
