Keeping the roar going

At the time of writing this post, the video of the poem by Molly Case that was read at the RCN Congress has been viewed 128,061 times in the 3 days since it was uploaded onto youtube.
I am not sure what constitutes 'going viral' but this must surely meet that criteria?

Twitter has been alive with Retweets of the link, and there have been several prompts by Tweeters to TV shows and other media outlets to get this video played to a wider audience.

What I find so incredibly powerful about this growing campaign is that it has motivated so many people to expand the influence of the message out of the circle of those who recognise the importance of the message, to those who might need some more convincing.

This message is one that many nurses already concur with, but preaching to the converted is not enough to really make an impact. Those that need to be made aware that the negative media focus on a small number of nurses is having a demonstrable effect on the remaining, dedicated and hard working members of our profession.
Morale in nursing must be at an all time low in the context of sustained criticism of the profession. How do nurses still manage to haul themselves out of bed to go to work when they know that there is a growing public perception that they have lost their ability to be caring?
Moreover, how are we going to continue to encourage people to come into the profession in the first place if this is how they are going to be perceived.

The professional identity of the nurse amongst student nurses (for those who know, or care) is the focus of my PhD, and I am watching these latest events very closely because- as the chinese would say- we live in 'interesting' times, and we can learn much from this.

But, this aside, there is a more pressing need for us now that we have this momentum. With International Nurses Day approaching, how can we keep the roar going?
How can we tell the world that, despite the revelations of the Francis inquiry, that nursing still holds great value to our patients; that if you want real change to happen in the NHS and beyond, that politicians and policy makers must listen to the next generation of nurses, our students.

I am incredibly proud of our students, they constantly surprise me with their enthusiasm and energy; they put up with a lot and they can be a great force for change. But we have to support them and give them the tools to turn this roar into action. 
There have been too many years of us just accepting that "this is the way things are" and that we just have to grin and bear it. Or, worse still, that if you raise concerns you will be ostracised.

Let's use the momentum gained from Molly's message.

Let's keep the roar going!