INDIANAPOLIS — After five decades, Cheryl Hansell says nursing is "light years different," but one thing has stayed the same — the letter she wrote as a graduating senior in the 1972 IU School of Nursing Class.
On Friday, IU nursing faculty, staff, students and alumni unveiled what was inside the 1972 time capsule, which was located in the entryway of the School of Nursing Building at Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis.
Included in the time capsule was Hansell's letter projecting what IU nursing would be like in 2022.
"I think the technology has changed everything. It's gone from handwritten paper, if you copied it it was carbon paper. There were no Xerox machines," Hansell said. "The whole concept of the nurse has changed ... nurses have so much more involvement in patient care now."
Hansell says when she started, nurses didn't have stethoscopes and couldn't draw blood or start IVs. She went on to have a 30 year nursing career before retiring.
Other items in the time capsule included:
- A nursing cap and pin
- Newspaper clippings about the school
- Photographs of nursing students in their uniforms
- School newsletters and other announcements
"I think over the next 50 years we are going to see some remarkable things that create an impact to patients, to populations [and] to healthcare," Robin Newhouse, dean of the IU School of Nursing, said. "Nurses are important to the community because they are really the backbone of the healthcare system."
Contents of the time capsule will be managed and preserved by IU archivists.
-
Westfield Schools uses innovation to show students careers
"We really wanted to give kids an opportunity to see different career fields that they may not have previously known existed," Brian Tomamichel with Westfield Washington Schools said.HSE schools offering variety of foods to expand kids' palate
Ramen is just one of a handful of diverse food options Hamilton Southeastern Schools is offering their students.Local artists share work ahead of 57th Annual Penrod Arts Fair
Two Noblesville artists create sculptures to make your garden stand out from your neighbors. They’re being featured in the country’s largest single-day arts fair happening in Indianapolis next month.IU begins new football era with coach Curt Cignetti making debut against FIU
Indiana begins a new football era Saturday when coach Curt Cignetti makes his debut against Florida International