The Phillips School of Nursing at Mount Sinai Beth Israel gave students white coats and a mission of compassionate care.
The Phillips School of Nursing at Mount Sinai Beth Israel recently held its second annual White Coat Ceremony for nursing students in the Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing program. The event, held on Tuesday, February 5, at Stern Auditorium, was designed to instill a commitment to providing compassionate care among the next generation of registered nurses.
The White Coat ceremony, long a rite of passage at medical schools, was introduced to nursing in 2014, said Elizabeth Cleek, PsyD, Chief Program Officer and Vice President of the Arnold P. Gold Foundation, a sponsor of the event. Dr. Cleek advised the students in the years ahead “to take that extra moment—despite the pressures, despite the new technologies that may hold some of the answers—to be fully present with the person or people in front of you.”
During the ceremony, each student was cloaked with a white coat provided by the School of Nursing and received a pin with a gold Mobius loop from the Gold Foundation that symbolizes the continuous bond of trust, respect, and communication that connects nurses with their patients.
“I leave you with this quote by Maya Angelou,” said the keynote speaker, Laly Joseph, DVM, DNP, APRN, Senior Associate Dean of the Phillips School of Nursing. “‘They may forget your name, but they will never forget how you made them feel.’”
Todd F. Ambrosia, DNP, APRN, FNAP, Dean of the Phillips School of Nursing, closed the ceremony by reminding students that “while nursing is rooted in knowledge and evidence-based practice, it is equally rooted in caring for the whole person, and not just an illness.” He also encouraged them “to always care for yourselves and for each other.”