With National Nurses Week just barely behind us, it is interesting to reflect on the state of the profession and all of the activities under way to generate new solutions to improve our workplaces. I had the opportunity to visit a number of hospitals during the past few weeks, and I am so energized by what I saw and heard that nurses are doing.

In one facility, the nursing practice council-a staff nurse group focused on clinical practice issues-had just completed an extensive redesign of the nurse technician role. In addition to the new job design, the group also revamped the training processes so that nurses could be confident that technicians had the requisite skills to ensure good patient care.

In another facility, the nursing staff was leading the implementation of new customer service initiatives with aggressive targets set to significantly improve the patient experience in their health system. At the heart of this effort was a genuine commitment by the organization to showcase the excellent nursing care provided by their professionals. And at yet another hospital, nurses were planning the redesign of patient flow from the emergency room through all levels of care, concluding with discharge. Their efforts are focused on eliminating the bottlenecks for patients and ultimately increasing the capacity of the facility to accept more patients.

What is so reassuring about all of this is that undoubtedly thousands of similar efforts are going on in health care today. Nurses have stepped up to provide the leadership and know-how to make changes that will support better patient care and, at the same time, ensure improvements in nurses' work life. I think that by National Nurses Week in 2003, we will be looking back on a year filled with significant progress and a feeling of accomplishment that our profession is increasingly attractive as a career.

The challenge for all of us is to make sure we stay involved in initiatives as they are organized in our facilities. Volunteer to be a part of the teams that are working on complex problems. Keep your peers informed about the progress being made. Support administrative efforts to make changes and be seen as part of the solution. And stay involved with the professional organizations that affect your practice. One way to do that is to write articles about your successes so that others can benefit from what you have discovered. Another way is to attend meetings of your specialty groups and share ideas with colleagues. The more we work with others to disseminate our findings and learning, the better off we will be.

So, for me, nursing right now feels energizing, with enormous momentum coming from many sources and directions. It feels less insular, as we are more open to help from others who are committed to our vitality. I am sure that we will seize the moment in our own way and contribute to the changes that need to be made.

Discuss this and other topics with your colleagues at www.nurseweek.com/rnvillage.