Summer 2008 Vol. VI, No. 4

Redefining Nursing in Lebanon

At AUBMC, Nursing Services is undergoing the Herculean process of becoming a "Magnet-Designated Facility," a process that demands significant changes in the way that nurses operate - and has resulted in a new level of appreciation for the nursing profession in Lebanon.

The American Nurses' Credentialing Center (ANCC), which is affiliated with the American Nurses Association, established the Magnet Recognition Program in 1994 to recognize and encourage best practices in nursing services. Supporters of the program point out that to earn "Magnet" status a hospital must be able to demonstrate that its nurses deliver excellent patient outcomes and enjoy a high level of job satisfaction. Assistant Hospital Director for Nursing Services Gladys Mouro says that the environment and the culture of AUBMC have changed as a result of the Magnet process.

Although she acknowledges that there are criticisms of the Magnet process and even admits that she once shared some of them, "the more I learned about Magnet, the more I became convinced that it really would make a difference in patient care," Mouro says. "I sense the difference among the nurses. Staff are happier, patients are more satisfied, and our outcomes have improved in patient care. Physicians respect and rely on nurses more than they did and the image of nursing at AUBMC and in the community is so positive."

Anthony Shamoun, who is currently an advanced practice nurse at AUBMC, left Lebanon in 2005 to study for a master's degree at the University of Pennsylvania. When he returned to AUBMC, he couldn't believe the changes that had taken place during his absence. "I was shocked because of the huge leap we had taken in such a short period of time," he says. "When I was in the US I had the opportunity to discuss the changes that had taken place in nursing in recent years with some of my fellow students. Almost everyone agreed that the process of changing had been hard, long, and tedious. My experience at AUBMC has been just the opposite."

Although a number of nurses will agree that there have been changes, some of them will tell you that the biggest changes are in how others perceive them as nurses. Nada Shehab, who is now assistant nursing director for education, remembers her father's disappointment when she announced that she wanted to be a nurse - and not a doctor. "Nurses were really considered servants at that point in time," she says. Although she welcomes some of the changes, she has some regrets too. "More people enter nursing now because they know they will be able to find a job when they graduate. Many of us who chose to be nurses back then did so because we wanted a career that allowed us to help patients and their families."

Hanadi Massalkhi is another nurse who had to convince her family that she wanted to be a nurse and not a doctor. Looking back, she says that "from the first day I joined AUBMC in 1990, I sensed that nurses were the core element at the hospital." She remembers feeling "empowered" even then but says, "empowerment and autonomy were not words that we used in those days."