Northern Montana Health Care President/CEO Kevin Harada recently attended the Montana State University-Northern nursing program’s pinning ceremony, celebrating the graduates as they prepare to enter the nursing profession. During the ceremony, Harada spoke to the important role nurses play in caring for and strengthening communities and recognized their dedication to this important profession.
The nursing pinning tradition traces back to Florence Nightingale, often called the “Mother of Modern Nursing.” Graduates of the Nightingale School of Nursing at St. Thomas’ Hospital in London received a badge upon completing their training, recognizing their education and readiness to serve as nurses. Over time, the ceremony evolved into the modern nursing pinning tradition, becoming widely adopted by nursing schools in the United States and England in the early 1900s, with each school creating its own unique nursing pin. Today, the ceremony symbolizes the graduates’ hard work, commitment, and successful completion of the education and clinical training required to serve and care for others as professional nurses.