Legacy is an important aspect of nursing. What better time to think about what you want to leave behind as a nurse and what your impact has been on nursing than right now, the International Year of the Nurse and the Midwife?
Since its inception almost 100 years ago, Sigma has a rich history filled with tremendous members who continue to shape the nursing profession. Each of our actions has an impact on the future of nursing, even if it seems inconsequential at the time. The Beta Xi Chapter at the University of Delaware maintains a vibrant Service and Outreach Committee that supports our “Building a Nursing Legacy” project. This project began over five years ago as a way to celebrate nursing and the impact we don’t always realize that we are making as individual nurses. One past-president started a new journey for our chapter to recognize and renew a living legacy. We were encouraged to think about what our legacy had been and would be, and then we were challenged to actively participate and live that journey. We wrote down our thoughts, feelings, and vision for the future of the chapter, Sigma, and the nursing profession. Here are a few more of our legacy-building activities:
- Annual membership appreciation night: Celebrates active, inactive, and potential members. This is an opportunity to form and reignite collaborative relationships, offer appreciation, and embrace the spirit of giving in an informal gathering.
- Collaboration with the university’s nursing alumni network: Brings together nursing students, former graduates, chapter members, and other nurses in the community to promote networking and potential mentoring opportunities.
- Leadership intern program: Cultivates future leaders and ensures legacy building through informal and formal mentoring. Mentoring fosters professional and personal growth and development, which is an essential piece to shape leaders in nursing. This program serves as a formal mentoring process that is mutually beneficial to the mentors, mentees, and the chapter. Potential interns complete the application process, including identifying goals and how this experience will impact their future. Beta Xi Chapter uses various mentoring modalities, including face-to-face contact, emails, social networking, and telephone calls for everyone to connect.
- Legacy ambassador: Fosters continuing legacy projects as part of the “Building a Nursing Legacy” project. This position is part of the Service and Outreach Committee.
As part of the “Building a Nursing Legacy” journey, members of the Service and Outreach Committee and the legacy ambassador developed a short survey with open-ended questions. Nurses and nursing students
(members and nonmembers) who attended chapter events anonymously responded to the questions, “What was your most memorable moment in nursing?” and “What was your most memorable patient moment?” Their responses really speak to the impact of the nursing profession on the individual nurse!
Outreach Committee and the legacy ambassador developed a short survey with open-ended questions. Nurses and nursing students (members and nonmembers) who attended chapter events anonymously responded to the questions, “What was your most memorable moment in nursing?” and “What was your most memorable patient moment?” Their responses really speak to the impact of the nursing profession on the individual nurse!
Legacy also involves engaging the next generation and mentoring. Another question asked nurses to share thoughts, words of wisdom, or advice for novice, graduating student nurses. One experienced nurse left this fabulous advice; “Set aside time for YOU each week, even if only 30 minutes. Be patient with yourself. You will make mistakes; you will never know everything. The key is to learn from your mistakes.” Another nurse said; “It is scary and it’s hard, but remember why you became a nurse in the first place. It is a tendency of people to recall all the bad experiences more than the good, keep that in mind. You do good even when you can’t see it.”
Legacy building at the chapter level is really up to you and what fits your chapter the best. There is no specific guide or right way to build a legacy—just make it meaningful. If you have a minute, pause and reflect on your most memorable moments and what nursing has meant to you as you think about your nursing legacy. What do you want to leave behind for the next generation? We’d love for you to share your thoughts with us on Twitter, using #mynursinglegacy and #memorablenursingmoments!
Jennifer Saylor, PhD, APRN, ACNS-BC, Jennifer Graber, EdD, APRN, PMHCNS-BC, and Evelyn Hayes, PhD, RN, MPH, FNP-BC, are members of Sigma’s Beta Xi Chapter at the University of Delaware.
At the University of Delaware, Jennifer Saylor and Jennifer Graber are Assistant Professors, and Evelyn Hayes is a Professor in the School of Nursing.