NTF Leadership Feature
Carlena Scriven
I attended the first annual new graduate conference in Saskatoon June 2006 when I was only a new graduate of 2 months. I was overwhelmed with the support I received at the conference as a new graduate and knew that I wanted to support other new graduates with the same support that I received. I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I indicated on my comments sheet that I wanted to volunteer as a NTF leader. Judy contacted me three months later and I jumped in with both feet.
At that time I was working full time as a Pediatric/Obstetric Float Pool RN in Prince Albert, SK, which is why I became the Prince Albert New Graduate Liaison for NTF. Our organization was very new and needed ground work development all over Saskatchewan. My job was to help develop the resources for new graduates in Prince Albert and to act as a liaison for new graduates to nursing leaders in the community such as managers, educators, and nursing instructors. While I was in Prince Albert on my own, myself and the other 12 new graduates that made up the Nursing the Future leadership team all worked together over the year to accomplish our goals. During that first year I spoke at several education days and with the 4th year nursing students at the First Nations University in Prince Albert, connected with the manager of Nursing for the Victoria Hospital, spoke at the WRCASN conference in Sakatoon and the SRNA conference in Prince Albert, and was featured on Shaw Live Now!. As a team we were also invited to speak with Health Minister Len Taylor regarding our concerns for new graduates and how we could best support new graduates.
As I worked more with Nursing the Future, I found that my skills as a professional and as a leader developed more the more I challenged myself. Perhaps my biggest challenge was the mentorship program that Shari (Dawson) Mack and I began to develop for Saskatchewan. We were invited to present an 8 hour mentorship workshop to new graduates and their mentors on two separate occasions. I presented in October 2007 and Shari presented in January 2008. It was by far the most educational experience for me as Shari and I both developed the workshop and then presented it along with Judy. I truly enjoyed the experience and felt that we were able to give some guidance to the new mentorship roles that our attendees were embarking on. Following this, Saskatchewan developed a mentorship program for new graduates that was funded largely by the health regions and used NTF as a consultant. I have spoken with several nurses that were involved with this program and they all felt that this was a positive experience for both the new graduates and the mentors.
I feel that I have the best job with NTF right now. I have been able to pass most of the liaison activity to up and coming new graduate leaders that have a much better pulse on what is important to new graduates now, but I am involved enough that I can stay in tune to what is going on as a consult and a cheerleader. I am very proud of how the organization has grown and how the new leaders have developed it. I am so excited to see what happens in the future and where our newest leaders will take nursing leadership.
At that time I was working full time as a Pediatric/Obstetric Float Pool RN in Prince Albert, SK, which is why I became the Prince Albert New Graduate Liaison for NTF. Our organization was very new and needed ground work development all over Saskatchewan. My job was to help develop the resources for new graduates in Prince Albert and to act as a liaison for new graduates to nursing leaders in the community such as managers, educators, and nursing instructors. While I was in Prince Albert on my own, myself and the other 12 new graduates that made up the Nursing the Future leadership team all worked together over the year to accomplish our goals. During that first year I spoke at several education days and with the 4th year nursing students at the First Nations University in Prince Albert, connected with the manager of Nursing for the Victoria Hospital, spoke at the WRCASN conference in Sakatoon and the SRNA conference in Prince Albert, and was featured on Shaw Live Now!. As a team we were also invited to speak with Health Minister Len Taylor regarding our concerns for new graduates and how we could best support new graduates.
As I worked more with Nursing the Future, I found that my skills as a professional and as a leader developed more the more I challenged myself. Perhaps my biggest challenge was the mentorship program that Shari (Dawson) Mack and I began to develop for Saskatchewan. We were invited to present an 8 hour mentorship workshop to new graduates and their mentors on two separate occasions. I presented in October 2007 and Shari presented in January 2008. It was by far the most educational experience for me as Shari and I both developed the workshop and then presented it along with Judy. I truly enjoyed the experience and felt that we were able to give some guidance to the new mentorship roles that our attendees were embarking on. Following this, Saskatchewan developed a mentorship program for new graduates that was funded largely by the health regions and used NTF as a consultant. I have spoken with several nurses that were involved with this program and they all felt that this was a positive experience for both the new graduates and the mentors.
I feel that I have the best job with NTF right now. I have been able to pass most of the liaison activity to up and coming new graduate leaders that have a much better pulse on what is important to new graduates now, but I am involved enough that I can stay in tune to what is going on as a consult and a cheerleader. I am very proud of how the organization has grown and how the new leaders have developed it. I am so excited to see what happens in the future and where our newest leaders will take nursing leadership.
