Nursing At Children's

It is May, and time for Nurses Week. I would like to congratulate all Children’s nurses for their good work all year round. They have performed marvelously in their duties, especially amidst all the changes we have had and amidst the various catastrophes such as Hurricane Katrina. In the past year alone Children’s nurses have traveled to New Orleans, South America, and Ghana to help children and their families. This work is in the best tradition of bringing health care to other parts of the world, following in the footsteps of Florence Nightingale and also Mary Slessor, another pioneer who is less well-known in America.

Mary Slessor, fondly known as “Ma Slessor,” was a Scottish Presbyterian missionary who arrived in Calabar, Nigeria, in 1876 at age 29, and remained there for 40 years, helping the people create healthier lives. She was a self-educated woman who had been born into poverty; her difficult early life prepared her for the hardships she faced in Nigeria.

When she arrived in Calabar, slavery was a common practice, and some superstitions had great power. One of the myths or superstitions was that twins were evil; twin babies were killed or thrown into the bush and left to die, while their mothers were driven from their homes to die in the jungle. Trials determined guilt through an ordeal by poison. When a king died, his wives and servants were buried with him, because it was believed that they would serve him in the other world.

Mary went into action. She started by learning the Efik language to help her reach out to the people. She became fluent in that language and began to preach against the violent superstitions, and also led others by the example of her way of life. She carried a Bible in one hand and her medical kit in the other.

Ma Slessor became widely known in the region as a preacher and healer, and gained enough influence to be able to intervene in wars between tribes. She built houses wherever she lived, and was always involved in the saving of lives, including taking many infants into her home. She was able to end the practice of killing twins and their mothers and had a great impact on other destructive practices.

So I would like to wish all the nurses a great Nurses Week, and pray that they keep the flag flying as practiced by the Nightingales and the Slessors of old. There are indeed so many Nightingales and Slessors in our midst today. Let us support and encourage them.

Go Nurses! Go and conquer the world with the milk of human kindness.

References:

www.wholesomewords.org/missions/bioslessor.html

www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/africa/features/dtoryofafrica/8chapter4.shtml