The Iota Chapter of Sigma Theta Tau International (STTI), founded at the Vanderbilt School of Nursing, recently celebrated its 60th anniversary with a guest lecture by Suzanne Prevost, Ph.D., RN., president of the nursing research honor society.
“The professional development piece of nursing is very important and continues to develop for the rest of your life,” said Colleen Conway-Welch, Ph.D., CNM, dean of VUSN and an STTI member for more than 40 years. “STTI is supportive of nursing graduates in every dimension of life and has created a global community of nurses to improve lives.”
Prevost discussed STTI’s international focus, specifically its partnership with the United Nations Millennium Development Goals, where nurses focused on health outcomes have helped improve indicators such as national poverty rates.
Additionally, several chapters have taken on issues, such as clean drinking water in under-developed countries, to improve community health.
“STTI’s own Journal of Nursing Scholarship is providing examples of how many countries are increasingly looking to advanced practice nurses to fill the access to care void,” she said. “Provider migration, those going from low-resource countries to high-resource countries, is a huge issue we need to address, as well as wars, terrorism and natural disasters.”
Prevost encouraged nurses and all providers to seek out opportunities for international exposure by learning a second language, engaging in cultural immersion experiences, offering skills to your local community, and looking for other networking outlets.
Sigma Theta Tau International (STTI) has more than 130,000 members and 486 chapters throughout the world.
The Iota Chapter is the eighth oldest and was founded by a small group of VUSN students, including Janie Macy, who attended the presentation. The Iota Chapter has more than 3,000 members, 168 of whom were inducted at a separate ceremony earlier this month.
