The World Health Organization declared 2020 the
International year of the Nurse and Midwife. In Canada, National Nurses Week
takes place in the second week of May. During all the pressures and uncertainty
of COVID-19, we have relied on nurses at the front lines of healthcare more
than ever before – in these stories, we celebrate our staff, friends, and
partners who have chosen this heroic life of sacrifice and service.
“I am a nurse,” said Mike Villeneuve, CEO of the Canadian
Nurses Association. “A lot of people volunteer to find that spirit of service,
but I found a career where I could serve, teach, and help others – and be paid
for it. It all fit for me.”
Mike Villeneuve graduated in 1983 with a Bachelor of Science
in Nursing from the University of Toronto. His first role was in neurosurgery
at Sunnybrook, and he kept that focus for almost 20 years, including a Masters
degree completed in 1993. He took a pause to reevaluate in 1999 when he was let
go, and was preparing himself to return to healthcare delivery when a
colleague, the Federal Chief Nurse, invited him to join her in Ottawa.
“I was completely unprepared to be the senior policy advisor
in the Office of Nursing Policy,” admitted Mike, “but what my colleague wanted
was someone who was immersed in the angst of the front line, based in practice,
and who could think on his feet. That was me.” After nearly another 20 years in
policy, he was invited to the Canadian Nurses Association in 2017.
“I’m not sure that nursing skills translate directly to the
corporate world,” Mike said, “I mean, I might have been better prepared with an
MBA. What nursing training does do is help you look people in the eye and ask
what’s wrong. Something’s wrong. Are you in pain? The relationship side of
business, leadership, networking… it’s all much easier following a career in
nursing.”
However, when we talk about patient safety incidents and
system errors – especially his own patient safety incident, medication administered
to the wrong patient, which continues to plague him 35 years later – nurses
play such a major role. “Ultimately, we are the last line of defense,” Mike
said. “We know when we should slow down, when we should listen – and, in 1985, I
didn’t.”
Mike’s concern is that nurses are facing heightened levels
of stress, demand, and in some places a lack of support every day during the
pandemic.
“I would just like to wish all nurses a great National
Nurses Week,” he concluded. “We never thought the Year of the Nurse would be
like this – we’re talking about washing your hands like Florence Nightingale
did in 1854! So I just want to thank every single nurse, across Canada and
around the world for the courage of their work in this pandemic.”
The Canadian Patient Safety Institute honours the efforts
of all nurses – indeed, all healthcare providers – across Canada and around the
world. Have you thanked a nurse today?