Heroes...

What defines a hero?

The dictionary defines a hero as a man of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his brave deeds or noble qualities. That means the possibility exists for 3,324,047,000 males in the world to be a hero or 50.24% of the worlds population.

One of my biggest heroes is Capt. Chesley Burnett Sullenberger, III "Sully". You may remember him for his landing a plane in the Hudson River and never loosing a passenger He had lost both engines to a flock of birds. The flight as he stated was, "completely routine and unremarkable" for the first 100 seconds of flight. The next 208 seconds are what make him a hero.

His only words to the control tower after it was clear he would not be able to land at any nearby airports, "Were going to be in the Hudson." He told the flight crew and passengers to , "Brace for Impact." I often think of those words when I am faced with a crisis-- 

Tonight, I challenged each one of my students.  After watching the video of Capt. Sully's incredible landing, I asked the question, "Is he a Hero?" Unanimously, they shook their heads, "Yes." We talked about the defining characteristics of what made him a hero--ability to remain calm under pressure, the ability to save all lives on board, and to go against air traffic control when it was clear he could not make it any further.

I then asked them if they were Heroes? We had just talked about issues in their practice. They felt that what they did as nurses was insignificant. Each day they are making the same decisions as Capt. Sully. They are alerting others when they "loose engines". They remain calm in the midst of "Going in the Hudson" and they "Brace for Impact" as they meet the ever changing health care environment.

The number of licensed registered nurses in the United States is 3.1 million. Women represent 93.4% of the total.

So, who are your heroes?

Lessons Learned: Heroes are not born; they are educated, trained and practice--they are also women.