By Gordon Williams 

The relationship between nurses and the American Red Cross runs deep, to our very origin as an organization founded by Clara Barton in 1881.

To this day, nurses play a vital role in the work of the Red Cross--delivering healthcare to disaster victims and teaching courses in first aid and CPR locally and abroad. An exceptional example of the relationship was on display this April when 40 diplomatic nurses --employees of the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Medical Services visited our Seattle office.

They came from every corner of the world--from 34 countries in all, as far apart as Nepal and Sudan. All work in U.S. embassies and consulates around the world--providing care to State Department workers and their dependents.

The cohort traveled to Seattle for an annual Continuing Nurse Education Conference--held in conjunction with the University of Washington’s Ambulatory Care Nursing Conference. Every diplomatic nurse is required to become a certified Basic Life Support (BLS) provider, able to deliver life-supporting services to ill and injured patients.

A further goal for the Overseas Nursing Program is to have at least one nurse in every overseas post also certified as a BLS Instructor, able to train others in delivering that care. 

Glenda Siegrist, Director of Overseas Nursing for the State Department Bureau of Medical Services is herself a nurse practitioner—saw the Seattle conference as an opportunity to partner with the local Red Cross chapter and offer BLS Instructor Training to attendees. 

“We hold these conferences every year and we deliver training at all of them,” says Siegrist, “The difference is that usually the training is done in some hotel conference room. This is the first time we have done it in Seattle and the first time we have used a Red Cross facility.” 

The State Department already uses Red Cross material in training its nurses. In fact, the State Department is a national client of the Red Cross Training Services--making use of Red Cross teaching material in both BLS and pediatric BLS. Further, the Red Cross Seattle headquarters was well equipped to bring all 40 nurses in-house for training. 

“They trained 20 nurses one day and 20 the next,” said Megan Elliott, Training Services national accounts manager located in the Northwest Region.

The Red Cross supplied classroom space, teaching aids, supplies, and equipment including the iconic Red Cross mannequins, used to teach CPR. Once back to their posts, they will use their new instructor status to train other embassy staff up to BLS standards. A certification that lasts for two years. 

Siegrist says the nurses--few of them Americans, were thrilled to work in a Red Cross building.

“It was fun for all of us being in a Red Cross headquarters building,” she says. The group was spotted taking lots of photos to mark the opportunity. 

Having made the transition from a hotel conference room to the Red Cross building, Siegrist says she hopes to do it again. The next annual nursing conference is set for Las Vegas--involving some 200 nurses from around the world. Segrist says negotiations are underway to hold the conference in a Red Cross facility in Las Vegas. 

As far as the Red Cross goes, Elliott says the organization is delighted to have helped bolster the level of healthcare provided to State Department workers around the world. Many overseas State Department facilities are located in countries where local medical facilities are iffy. 

“The training put 40 new BLS instructors in embassies all over the world,” Elliott says. “Sometime, somewhere that is going to save a life.”