Supporting the next generation of nursing leaders

The Scrubs that Fit column on the Australian College of Nursing’s (ACN) NurseClick blog is all about the highs and lows of being an early-career nurse from the perspective of Emerging Nurse Leader (ENL) Lucy Osborn MACN. Since starting the column, Lucy has written over 20 articles that provide advice to early career nurses and students, covering a range of topics including tips for dealing with emotionally tough times, essential items for your first day on the job and advice on applying for graduate programs.

Last month, the Australian Health Journal (AHJ) produced a feature highlighting Lucy’s journey from ENL to nursing blogger. The video also highlights the impact her blog has had on the next generation of nurses by interviewing two other ACN ENL program participants. You can watch the full video below.

For Lucy, the column began with the intention of sharing her own experiences to highlight to students and early-career nurses that they aren’t alone in their journey into and through the profession.

“The Scrubs that Fit started as a way for me to practice my journal skills and also keep a little journal of how I was feeling as an early career nurse,” she says.

“When I started writing I never thought it would be good enough to be published. The Emerging Nurse Leader platform with the Australian College of Nursing gave me that support that I needed to get my work ready for publication.”

“It started as a place for me to jot down my own thoughts and feelings and it ended with me pursuing all areas of nurses to show students that nurses aren’t alone and that we all go through these types of journeys alone.”

The Scrubs that Fit Column has been widely received by nurses across Australia and the articles have had more than 18,000 views on the ACN website. To highlight this, AHJ spoke to ENLS Carina Fernandes MACN and Hayley Pollock MACN(Student), who shared the impact the blog has had on their nursing careers.

Carina — who is currently studying a Bachelor of Nursing Advanced Degree at the University of Western Sydney, touched on the human and real aspect the blogs touch on.

“The articles on the Scrubs that Fit have been really useful to me on gaining more information on what it is like to be a nursing student and an early career nurse,” she says.

“They are very raw and I found them really useful, especially the article on applying for new graduate programs and essential items for your first day of nursing

For Hayley — who is tutored by Lucy in her Bachelor of Nursing Course — the relevance of the blog was the peer to peer advice from somebody who has been through the same experience.

“Most of all I find it really helpful to read them and that I am not alone in experiencing the things that I am experiencing,” she says.

There are helpful tips and also that transition to being a new grad (uate) which can be really scary for people. It is so validating to be able to read that I am not the only one who feels like that and it answers the questions I don’t always feel I can answer face to face.”

Hayley has since gone on to write her own article to help student nurses overcome the feeling of self doubt and imposter syndrome.

Lucy finished the video with some advice for early career nurses and students.

“One of the most important things about being a nurse is always challenging yourself to become better,” she says.

“Health care is always changing and relying on others as nurses to share the experiences we have on a day to day basis. For me, I like to share my experiences through the blog. For other people,  it can be a little trickier and I really encourage you to open up your networks and to be talking to people you might not necessarily talk to at work.”

“Find those nurses at work you don’t really know and ask them about their experiences and this for anybody at any stage of their career. Everybody has something to share and we have something to learn from every one of you.”