In any sport, you have your all-stars. these are the big-name players who go out and hit home runs or make three-pointers. All-stars are a huge asset to any team, but they are not the only vital players for success. Just as you need the heavy hitters, you also need the players who set up the shot, pass the ball, or keep morale up in the locker room when the team is in a slump.  

Nursing is very much a team sport and it was this sense of unity that drew me to the paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) as a nursing student. Wide-eyed, I watched a “Code Blue” resuscitation effort from the doorway of a patient room. I was so impressed by the seemingly choreographed performance of the nurses. Two were priming a continuous renal replacement circuit, another delivering bolus fluid, and a fourth comforted a terrified parent. They each took on lead or supportive roles as the situation required, all in concert, no one role more important than the others. Each of their individual contributions highlighted their unique skills, directed in a way that supported one unified effort. To me, this is the essence of nursing. 

Now, years later in my work as a clinical nurse specialist in the same busy unit, I am privileged to see our highly skilled team in action daily. We have our “nursing all-stars” who are highly technically skilled. They run dialysis and Extracoporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) circuits. They sink every IV, and they have become somewhat legendary around the unit.

 There are also our support players, who ensure their colleagues are cared for and get their essential reviving breaks on time. They ensure that no patient goes without an assessment, a bath, or a kind word, while the others are focused on the emergency in the neighbouring bed. They are the nurses who keep the mood positive, skillfully de-escalating tensions when the team is over-taxed and running on empty after its sixth admission in an hour. 

These “locker room” RNs are just as integral to the functioning of the team as our all-stars, though they can be easily overlooked. In a culture that continues to elevate technical specialty, it is important we continue to value the foundational principles of nursing as well. This sports analogy is so well-suited to modern-day nursing because all-stars and support players must exist together for either to be there at all.

So, the next time you’re in awe of the nurses who run complex technologies, look around for the nurse who is giving a pep talk to the shaky new resident (physician-in-training), or stocking a colleague’s cart. Be also in awe of these nurses, because as much as a team needs all-stars, we also need support players to have a true impact on patients.