New team celebrates ONA’s diverse professionals
Our new Member Recognition Advisory Team will ensure all members “feel one with our union,” team member Melissa Folz says.
Our new Member Recognition Advisory Team will ensure all members “feel one with our union,” team member Melissa Folz says.
It’s the next iteration of ONA’s Nursing Week Advisory Team (NWAT) – and this one is for members of all professions.
For years, our NWAT, comprised of one nurse member per region, focused on activities exclusively related to Nursing Week, including themes, gifts, posters, events and resources.
But ONA is much more than nurses.
We proudly represent health-care professionals from a vast array of non-nurse classifications, including social workers, respiratory therapists, physiotherapists, personal support workers, medical radiation therapists, occupational therapists, unit clerks, etc.
With that in mind, ONA revised the mandate of the NWAT and broadened its composition and work to recognize members of all professions to a greater extent. Even the use of the inclusive word “member” in its new name – Member Recognition Advisory Team (MRAT) – is intentional, meant to highlight and value every single job of every single member.
“The mandate of this exciting team, which is open to all members, is to further ONA’s vision by reviewing and providing input on a broader range of worker and professional designation dates,” explains First Vice-President Alan Warrington, who chairs the team. “It serves as a way for members to help guide communications and local activities related to professional and worker recognition, and encourages Locals to celebrate the diverse professions within our union, which makes us so strong.”
The team could, for example, suggest resources and messaging for communications, such as web pages and social media posts, for Social Work Week, one of the 21 regular and 12 major observances ONA acknowledges, which also includes National Physiotherapy Month, Personal Support Worker Day, National Respiratory Therapy Week and many more.
“I want to be clear that with the launch of this team, we aren’t cancelling Nursing Week.” Warrington adds. “Instead, we’re now celebrating additional observational dates throughout the year to be more inclusive of all ONA members.”
At the team’s first meeting this past January, members did exactly that, reviewing and providing suggestions and ways to further highlight observances from March to May of this year, including Nursing Week.
“Our first meeting was very good,” explains team member Melissa Folz from Region 1, who is an intensive care unit nurse. “There was lots of great discussion regarding themes for Nursing Week. I was interested to see other disciplines that work within our union, as the team seems to be a mix of respiratory therapists, social workers and RNs. I feel as though my role is to provide insight from the RN perspective.”
She is one of 10 members (two per region, approximately half of whom are nurses and half of whom are health-care professionals) on MRAT:
Team members, who are supported by staff, were chosen by expression of interest last fall and will serve a two-year term. Folz explains that she wanted to put her name forward because part of her role with her Local focuses on member engagement.
I hope this team can acknowledge all ONA members (not just nursing) to make them feel that they’re truly one with this union.
“I was interested in learning some new ideas and meeting with other Locals to learn the things that they do with their members to keep them engaged with and excited about ONA. I hope this team can acknowledge all ONA members (not just nursing) to make them feel that they’re truly one with this union and appreciated just as much as nurses are.”
She also hopes “that other members will provide feedback to the team on what they would like to see from ONA.”
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