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SBNH in London: From the Commonwealth Nurses & Midwives Conference to the Nightingale Ancestral Home

Professor Laurie Gottlieb along with nine of her colleagues presented a special two-hour symposium dedicated to SBNH at the 5th Commonwealth Nurses & Midwives Conference in London, UK, followed by a guided visit to Lea Hurst, Nightingale Ancestral Home.
Christina Gelsomini | 8 Apr 2020

Professor Laurie Gottlieb along with nine of her colleagues presented a special two-hour symposium dedicated to SBNH at the (CNMC) in London, UK, on Friday, March 6, 2020. Over 300 nurses and nursing leaders from the 54 members of the Commonwealth Nursing Federation, as well as nurses from Europe, attended the two-day conference.

2020 marks a critical milestone for nurses. The World Health Organization has designated 2020 as the Year of the Nurse and the Midwife, in honour of the bicentenary of the birth of Florence Nightingale, and the conference coincided with British Commonwealth Day celebrations. The organizers of the conference chose as its theme Celebrate: Nurses and midwives, breaking down barriers, leaving no one behind. Presentations showcased and celebrated the contributions of nurses and midwives to global health and wellbeing under the following themes:

  • Clinical practice
  • Leadership and management
  • Education and training
  • Policy and projects
  • Research and innovation

These themes clearly align with the goals of our current research project, “Transforming Nurses’ Work Environments Through a Strengths-Based Leadership and Management Training Program”. Moreover, SBNH is inspired by the writings of Florence Nightingale, making the timeliness and relevance of this symposium notable. Our SBNH symposium was the only symposium of the conference and the organizers provided us a large communications presence with a dedicated SBNH table, a poster, and a postcard describing the symposium distributed in each participant’s conference bag.

The symposium, entitled “Strengths-Based Nursing and Healthcare: Re-envisioning Nursing, Empowering Clinicians, Leaders, Managers and Educators”, began with Laurie Gottlieb providing a brief overview of SBNH followed by eight short presentations organized into four themes:

  1. Educating nurses in SBNH
    1. Teaching SBNH in the Bachelor of Nursing – Implementing a flipped classroom. Lindsay Smith, University of Tasmania, Australia
    2. Adopting SBNH as the Philosophy and Approach to Underpin the ISoN Nursing Curricula. Annie Chevrier, Ď㽶ĘÓƵ
  2. Transforming the workplace: creating a culture of SBNH leadership
    1. Transforming the Workplace: Creating a SBNH culture in a children’s rehabilitation hospital. Marilyn Ballantyne, Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital, Toronto
    2. SBNH Training Program for Clinical Leaders and Managers. Pam Hubley, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto
  3. Empowering nurses through SBNH: reclaiming nursing and finding voice
    1. Impact of SBNH Reflective Practice Sessions on Clinicians. Christina Clausen, Jewish General Hospital, Montreal
    2. Empowering practice with SBNH – Student: A motor for change. Valérie Renoud-Grenier, Haute Ecole de Santé Vaud, Switzerland
  4. Breaking down silos: creating and strengthening partnerships.
    1. Advancing SBNH Through the Work of the McGill Collaborative. MĂ©lanie Lavoie-Tremblay, Ď㽶ĘÓƵ, Canada
    2. Creating SBNH Communities of Practice around women’s health: Cases of Burkina Faso, Africa, and Quebec Mimosa Community. Judith Lapierre, Université Laval, Canada

The symposium wrapped up with a question and answer period moderated by Bruce Gottlieb.

A Visit to Lea Hurst, Nightingale Ancestral Home

Lea Hurst, Derbyshire, England. The ancestral home of Florence Nightingale

On Monday, March 9th, following the conference, Laurie Gottlieb also organized a visit to the Nightingale ancestral home, Lea Hurst, for the group. Located in Darby, UK, a two-hour train ride from London, Lea Hurst is a most beautiful home, in a bucolic setting with sheep and deer roaming freely about. Our group was graciously hosted by Lea Hurst’s current owners Peter and Jennie Kay, who gave us a tour of their home followed by lunch served in the Nightingale dining room. The Kays have devoted the past several years to restoring the home and its grounds, acquiring many Nightingale family artifacts, and have with pride restored Lea Hurst to a family home after it was used as a nursing home for many years. Dr. Lynn McDonald, professor emeritus of the University of Guelph and foremost expert on Florence Nightingale, accompanied the group and served as our guide.

A memorable conference, an unforgettable outing!

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