Event: Federal plaque unveiling ceremony
Date: Tuesday, February 10, 2015
Time: 10 a.m.
Location: Kanakla Room, Cecil Green Park House, 6251 Cecil Green Park Road, Vancouver (view map)
The Government of Canada has declared Ethel Johns, founding director of the UBC School of Nursing, a Person of National Historic Significance. Johns was a lifelong advocate of nursing education and professional practice.
In recognition, a plaque will be unveiled February 10 at UBC on behalf of federal Environment Minister Leona Aglukkaq.
Johns (1879-1968) fought to establish university education and higher standards for nurses in Canada and internationally. She wrote numerous articles about the importance of trained nurses in public health care. Her efforts resulted in the establishment of a university nursing program at UBC in 1919 – the first such program of its kind in Canada and the British Empire.
“Ethel Johns changed how the world thinks about nursing and nursing education,” said Suzanne Campbell, UBC School of Nursing director. “Nursing used to be seen as a woman’s labour of love. Her extraordinary advocacy helped establish nursing as a professional, regulated occupation.”
Campbell added: “The UBC School of Nursing turns 100 in 2019, and Ethel’s values and ideals remain as relevant today as when the school first opened its doors.”
Parks Canada’s Historic Sites and Monuments Board awards the Person of National Historic Significance designation to individuals who have made outstanding and lasting contributions to Canada. Past recipients include suffragette Helena Gutteridge; industrialist Leon Joseph Koerner; and media thinker Marshall McLuhan.
Note to editors: Media are invited to attend the event. For more photos of Ethel Johns, visit http://goo.gl/bpPwJm