Special Statement from the STN Board of Directors
June 4, 2020
Optimal trauma care and racism cannot coexist. Systemic racism in the United States, as evidenced by events of the past week, decades of discrimination, and centuries of injustice, has eroded the core of our country. We, as a society, have a long way to go to tear down the walls and division that plague our nation. We, as a Society, as the Society of Trauma Nurses (STN), also have a long way to go.
Racism, bigotry, and hatred towards any individual or group is incompatible with the ethical principles of nursing. STN and its leaders stand firm in our commitment to diversity, inclusion, equity, and social justice for all people, as is consistent with STN’s mission. We are deeply grieved by the events unfolding across our nation. Much of our sadness comes from the recognition that STN has fallen short of its mission.
Optimal trauma care and racism cannot coexist. Systemic racism in the United States, as evidenced by events of the past week, decades of discrimination, and centuries of injustice, has eroded the core of our country. We, as a society, have a long way to go to tear down the walls and division that plague our nation. We, as a Society, as the Society of Trauma Nurses (STN), also have a long way to go.
Racism, bigotry, and hatred towards any individual or group is incompatible with the ethical principles of nursing. STN and its leaders stand firm in our commitment to diversity, inclusion, equity, and social justice for all people, as is consistent with STN’s mission. We are deeply grieved by the events unfolding across our nation. Much of our sadness comes from the recognition that STN has fallen short of its mission.
- STN must do more to address racial disparities affecting the patients and communities we serve.
- STN must do more to empower members to take a stand against discrimination, wherever it exists.
- STN must do more to advocate intentionally for equitable care across the trauma continuum and across the globe.
- STN must do more to encourage diversity in trauma nursing, by insisting on diversity in governance, representation, and programming.
- Let us pledge to promote injury prevention by insisting on justice, peace, love, respect, kindness, and relentless nonviolent activism, for as long as it takes.
- Let us pledge to call out prejudice wherever we find it.
- Let us pledge to lift each other up with our words and actions.
DOWNLOAD: THE SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF TRAUMA AND VIOLENCE
Mikhail, Judy. (2018, March 22) PowerPoint: The Social Determinants of Trauma and Violence: Drivers of Trauma Disparities. Accessed on June 2, 2020 at https://www.traumanurses.org/2018-conference-materials
