The University of Winchester celebrated International Nurses Day with an event themed "Why I Still Love Nursing".
Nurses, both seasoned and in-training, shared important insights about their profession to an engaged crowd of students and academics on June 4.
Particularly notable were the remarks made by Julie Dawes, the chief nurse at Hampshire Hospitals Foundation Trust. Julie underscored the nurses' significant role in their community.
She said: "In nursing you are such a big part of the community where you work. You see people’s first days, good days, bad days and last days."
Honorary fellowship holder from the university, Sue Hill, who's held 24 roles in her career, took the audience through her journey.
She detailed her early passion for nursing, which was so strong that at just 13, she wrote a job application to the matron at Great Ormond Street.
Recent graduate from the University of Winchester, Cyzel Gomes spoke candidly about her early doubts regarding the profession, which were quashed when she started working on a gynaecological ward.
The satisfaction of seeing a family leave the ward, still smiling, affirmed her decision to join the profession.
In addition, final year students Grace Barnard, Ethan Sealey, Hannah Bryan, and Hazel Marshall all shared their personal nursing stories.
Ms Barnard said: "I was looking for a profession where I could help others, be challenged in the workplace and work as part of a team. I can officially say that I’ve found a profession that feels just like me, and I love my work."
Mr Sealey said he was inspired to take up nursing after sitting in a GP duty nurse room for an hour at the age of 14 and feeling bowled over by how knowledgeable, kind, down-to-earth and practical she was.
Although International Nurses Day usually falls on May 12, the birthdate of Florence Nightingale, this year's celebration at Winchester was delayed due to it falling on a Sunday.
The commemoration took place in West Downs Auditorium.
In his closing remarks, Professor Greer thanked the participants and highlighted the alignment between Florence Nightingale’s approach to nurse education and the university’s commitment to lifelong learning.
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