As I took part in recreating a 1906 photo outside our hospital main entrance, I thought about what has changed.

Nursing has opened its arms to transformation, but has never let go of its values. We are still honouring the trust that the first patients put in the NHS 70 years ago. Traditional values in modern day working.

The uniforms and wards might be different, but nurses still live by care, compassion, competence, communications, courage and commitment. We’ve called them the ‘6 Cs’ for the last five years, but they’ve always been there.

I wanted to be a nurse from age two. My fabulous mum was a community nurse just outside Manchester, and was listed in the phone book as ‘Nurse Lynch’. Patients would call her at home all hours of the day and night, and I remember accompanying her on some of her visits. I would watch her with awe and think, ‘Wow. I want to do that when I’m older’.

I started my dream job 33 years ago and the values I saw as a child, as a newly registered nurse and to this day have stayed steadfast.   

Care still defines nurses and our work. Compassion remains based on empathy, respect and dignity. Competence to deliver effective care and treatments, based on research and evidence, continues. Communication has stayed central to our caring relationships and effective team working. Courage to do the right thing still burns brightly. And commitment stand strong as the cornerstone of what we do.

Everything has changed and yet we are still the same.

Alison Lynch, Chief Nurse and Director of Quality Governance
Visiting Professor at the University of Chester