Inspired by the opportunity to celebrate the Year of the Nurse and Midwife back in 2020, we developed the concept of ‘pioneering nurses’ to celebrate and champion those who are driving palliative care forward and shaping end of life care at a local, national and international level.

Key identifiers of pioneering nurses

The key identifiers of pioneering nurses were drawn from the attributes shared by Florence Nightingale and Dame Cicely Saunders, two pioneers in their own right who remain relevant in contemporary nursing today, and relate to compassion, connection, creative thinking and campaigning for change. Pioneering nurses are visionary leaders who act as ambassadors for their profession, and whose stories are inspiring and instructive.

Our communities

In 2019 and 2020, we formed close connections with many nurses from around the world who are pioneering in their efforts. We continue to work with them and their colleagues to support their efforts, collaborate with them and learn from them. We have also connected a wider virtual community of nursing professionals through a series of vlogs and webinars, whose support and knowledge has been and will continue to be instrumental to us in helping to develop the Lantern Model of Nursing.