Packing 'em out in Finland

KOUPIO, Finland—A family wedding (our son Thomas), two visits to Ireland, and one to Finland have taken place since my last entry. The wedding photographs are well aired on family Facebook pages, but I thought it would do no harm to share one here. My talented sister-in-law made the wedding dress.

From left to right: Charles, Joseph, William, Yours Truly, Thomas,
Sally, Deborah, Hannah, Lucia, Amelia, and Rebecca—all Watsons!

Ireland

The visits to Ireland, made in close succession, were for the purpose of participating on an interview panel for a senior academic position at University College Cork (UCC) and to attend an examinations board at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI).

I worked in Ireland for six months—from 1998 to 1999—but when the “Celtic Tiger,” the rapid economic expansion that took place in Ireland between 1995 and 2000, inflated house prices and kept my family stuck in Scotland, I had to retreat back to the United Kingdom. Nevertheless, I have maintained regular contact with the Republic and make several visits annually.

Cork is a beautiful place, and I was very grateful to the UCC for two nights—my second stay—in the five-star, family-run Hayfield Manor. In Dublin, I have said goodbye several times to the RCSI at examination boards, but I keep being asked back and have no complaints. It was a pleasure to introduce a good colleague, Parveen Ali, PhD, RN, lecturer in nursing at the University of Sheffield, to Dublin and to have dinner with Catherine McCabe, PhD RN, assistant professor in nursing at Trinity College Dublin, with whom I have worked in Bahrain.

Finland

After a weekend at home, I flew to Helsinki and on to Koupio to spend a few days at the University of Eastern Finland. My host here has been Mari Kangasniemi, PhD, RN, with whom I had breakfast in Rome a few years ago at a conference. I am always pleasantly surprised how these unplanned encounters lead to future collaboration.

I gave two classes here, one to assembled masses of doctoral and master’s students in health on how to attract a reader’s attention in a manuscript. (To listen to this lecture as a podcast, click here.) I am rarely able to say that I packed out a lecture theatre, but I did this time. People were sitting on the floor and out in the corridor, and I was asked some excellent and challenging questions at the end.

The point I made about attracting readers’ attention in manuscripts is to realise who the initial readership is—first, the editor-in-chief and then the other editors and reviewers. If you do not take these people into account, your ultimate intended readership will never see your work. My second class, which was more sedate, was a dialogue with the doctoral students in nursing.

Future plans

After I return to the UK, I have no further travel planned for this month. Next month, I go to Australia and possibly Hong Kong and, if plans work out, Saudi Arabia in November. I look forward to teaching my online module in quantitative methods at the end of this month and getting reviews back on the manuscripts I’ve submitted in recent months.

For Reflections on Nursing Leadership (RNL), published by the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International. Comments are moderated. Those that promote products or services will not be posted.

Qatar deserves the best

DOHA, Qatar—The title of this entry is the Qatar government slogan, posted liberally throughout the capital city of Doha. I have been here since 17 January, part of a journey that took me through Finland. This time, I recorded a series of podcasts that describe my trip in audio form, but don’t be too critical—I’m only learning.

Land of ice and snow

It seemed strange to be leaving the United Kingdom and heading to Turku in Finland, knowing that, ultimately, after returning briefly to London, I would be in Doha, Qatar. However, that was my itinerary. I left the UK in fairly cold conditions to arrive in a winter wonderland at Helsinki. The short flight to Turku, in the south of Finland, took me to a similar scene. I was told that the conditions were “unusual,” but I could not ascertain if they were unusually cold or unusually warm. Whatever the case, snow had been followed by rain, which was followed by a freeze, and Turku was like a massive ice rink. Walking anywhere was extremely dangerous, so I had to forget about running. Usually, I walk from my hotel to the the University of Turku, but this time, I was grateful for the transport there and back.

While in Turku, I delivered two sessions on psychometric methods to the Finnish Postgraduate Student School. I also had dinner and caught up on Scandinavian and European nursing issues with Helena Lieno-Kilpi, PhD, RN, professor and head of the Department at Nursing Science at the university, and Riita Suhonen, PhD, RN, also a professor in that department.

Qatar

This was my first visit to Qatar. The trip started at 4 a.m. in Finland (2 a.m. UK time) as I had to catch a very early flight from Turku to Helsinki before heading to London and then on to Qatar. This was my first experience with Qatar Airways and their new “Dreamliner,” plane, made by Boeing. There was hardly any noise on board, and the air-conditioning was good. If you are lucky enough to fly business class, there is a lounge at the rear where you can relax, as if being in business class is not sufficiently relaxing. I made no use of the lounge, as I slept for most of the flight.

Downtown Doha

I arrived in Doha at midnight, and my hotel—the Grand Hyatt—provided a limousine, complete with wireless, free Internet. Running was difficult in Doha, due to lack of pavements, but I found a path along the private beach and ran “reps” to get Qatar on my Garmin GPS webpage.

I was here, at the invitation of Richard Gray, PhD, RN, and Annie Topping, PhD, RN, to deliver sessions to staff members of the Hamad Medical Corporation on writing for publication. Annie and I “go back” exactly 30 years, to when I was a student nurse in London and she was the head nurse in the ward where I was doing management assessment.

Yours Truly with workshop participants at
Hamad Medical Corporation.

While in Qatar, I also gave sessions on writing for publication at a workshop sponsored by the British Council aimed at collaborative research proposals between the UK and Qatar, and also at the University of Calgary in Qatar. My visit concluded with a reception at the British Embassy that was hosted by His Excellency Nicholas Hopton and attended by British Council staff working in the region.

I arrived at the embassy compound without any form of identification. During the week, I had carried my passport with me at all times. I have been to embassies in the United Kingdom, United States, and Ireland, so I know “the drill.” The day may have been saved by Annie Topping, who suggested that they Google me! I don’t know if they did but, following a long time with colleagues on one side of the compound fence and me on the other, I was allowed in.

I am returning to Hull for one week, for supervisions and other meetings, before a three-week absence that will take me to Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Italy. Naturally, you will read all about it.

For Reflections on Nursing Leadership (RNL), published by the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International.

Finland to United Kingdom to Bahrain

MANAMA, Bahrain—There could be no greater contrast than between the lush greenness and clean air of Finland and the scorched, dehydrated, and dusty landscape of Bahrain. That contrast is even more striking when you have only 24 hours between the two places with a very short visit home. The visit home was even shorter than planned, due to being stranded in Helsinki by one airline, having to transfer to another airline and another city in the UK, and finding my way home after public transport was closed. Such are the joys of international travelling, which some look upon in envy. As ever, I thoroughly enjoy what I do around the world, but the process of getting there can be tedious.

Finland

I was in Turku, as I was last year at this time, to give sessions on writing for publication to postgraduate research students at the University of Turku. This time, it was a Journal of Advanced Nursing (JAN) show, as I was with fellow editor and Hull colleague Mark Hayter, PhD, FAAN, professor of sexual and reproductive health at the University of Hull. The sessions were enjoyable, and the students interacted well.

The weather was fantastic, the food excellent, and it is always good to catch up with international colleagues. If there is a link between Turku and Bahrain, it is the open-access journal I edit, Nursing Open. One of the editors, Riitta Suhonen, PhD, RN, works in Turku, and, here in Bahrain, I am with Seamus Cowman, PhD, FAAN, who is now head of nursing at RCSI Bahrain, affiliated with the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI). Cowman is another editor of Nursing Open and, incidentally, the first Irish nurse to be elected a fellow of the American Academy of Nursing.

Bahrain

Bahrain continues to develop since my previous visit and, despite the desiccated landscape and dusty Middle Eastern backdrop, it has paradisiacal elements as land is reclaimed along the coast and small, exclusive communities emerge. I should be used to living in hotels—not all of which are five-star, believe me—but the luxury of the Gulf Hotel, Bahrain, and the tranquility and service of its Platinum Club provide an insight into a lifestyle that, but for generous hosts, I will never be able to afford. The dilemma is: Do you eschew it for fear of getting used to it and missing it; or do you indulge, knowing it will rarely be on offer again? As I stare out over the night lights of Bahrain from the top floor of the hotel and the waitress pours me another (free) drink, I think you see how I solved the dilemma. I’m going to miss this one day!

The purpose of my visit to Bahrain is to work as an external examiner on the master’s in nursing programme at the RCSI. I examine the same programme in Dublin, and part of the job is to ensure that the same standards are applied in both locations, on behalf of the RCSI and on behalf of the National University of Ireland, which is the degree-awarding body.

The Nursing Open theme continues, as one of the editorial board members, Catherine McCabe, PhD, RN, assistant professor, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland, arrives today in her capacity as external examiner for the undergraduate nursing programme. I am very pleased that my contract has been extended for another year and that I will also be starting as an examiner next month at Sultan Qaboos University, Oman. By sheer coincidence, my fellow examiner is none other than Cowman from RCSI. The Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International (STTI), is represented here by the relatively newly formed Rufaida Honor Nursing Society, which is seeking to become a full chapter of STTI. Catherine O'Neill, senior lecturer, RCSI Bahrain, played a major role in establishing it, along with local colleagues.

Running, climbing, and football

My efforts to get out on the rocks are being thwarted by an inordinate amount of travel, both in and out of the United Kingdom. This is probably the busiest year of my life. However, I continue to train indoors, and combine rock climbing with running. Finland was a joy to run in, but my 0530 run today in 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit) to avoid the sun, had me almost at my physiological limits. I don’t understand why this should make your legs feel as if they had lead weights attached. In addition, the expatriate workers waiting for their transport to work shared incredulous looks as I panted past. To make a living, they are forced to work in this heat. I could be in bed in an air-conditioned room.

Finally, the UK football (soccer) season has ended, and the highlight of the English season, the Football Association (FA) Cup included, for the first time in the club’s 110-year history “The Tigers,” my local Hull City team. The match was played at Wembley, the 90,000-seat national football stadium in North London. The opposition was the mighty Arsenal, a North London club, and 25,000 of us made the journey south to watch the game, including the three Watsons pictured.

We lost, but only after taking a 2-0 lead and taking them into a period of extra time. Nobody expected that, and I think we were happier than the Arsenal fans. We stayed to see Prince William award the FA Cup runners-up medals and departed, elated. My voice took a week to recover, and I look back on what was, surely, a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

For Reflections on Nursing Leadership (RNL), published by the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International. Comments are moderated. Those that promote products or services will not be posted.