Congress Abstracts 2004

39

PARTNERING WITH THE GIRL SCOUTS TO PROMOTE CAREER CHOICES IN ONCOLOGY NURSING. Maureen Mullin, RN, BSN, OCN^®, Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, PA.

Oncology nursing is a specialty often described as a “calling.” Lack of exposure to oncology nursing may be one of many impediments in selecting this field as a career choice. Oncology nurses at an NCI-designated comprehensive cancer center took a step in promoting not only oncology nursing, but also the entire profession of nursing.

The nurses planned, implemented, and evaluated an all-day program to promote oncology nursing. This initiative required teamwork and is an excellent project for the developing leader.

Oncology nurses and the Girl Scouts of Southeastern Pennsylvania joined forces to facilitate a group of Junior Girl Scouts (4th–6th grades) in earning the new nursing exploration patch. By sharing their clinical expertise and their love of nursing with children from the community, the nurses hoped to spark a fire in the hearts of some future nurses. Since students at this young age are open-minded about their future, the nurses selected this potentially impressionable age group.

The purpose of the nursing exploration patch is to increase awareness of nursing and its career opportunities for Girl Scouts. The patch explores the need for nurses, the many roles of nurses, education requirements, and information about basic health and wellness. The scouts must complete an activity from each of five categories to earn the patch: Career Exploration, Educational Lessons, Skill Builders, Service Projects, and Technology.

A graduate student developed pre- and post-tests to evaluate the effectiveness of this project. The results of the post-tests revealed a clarified perception of nursing, and discussions with the children at the end of the day demonstrated an increased likelihood of considering nursing as a career choice.

Selected topics were carefully reviewed for content in an effort to avoid the “squeamish” factor with the children. Two clinical nurse specialists demonstrated disease-prevention teaching by giving a presentation on sun safety. The scouts also enjoyed observational experiences in the perioperative areas including emergency care on a resuscitation manikin. Staff nurses interacted with the girls during a question/answer period and pizza lunch.