A nurse’s cap is a crown filled with the jewels of sincerity, honesty, honor, faith, confidence and dependability, practical nursing students who received their caps Wednesday were told.

The Suffolk Public Schools/Obici Hospital School of Practical Nursing observed the capping ceremony for the 14 students enrolled in the Class of 2005. Gwen T. Sweat, RN, MS, and the director of the school, compared the distinctive mark of a nurse to a crown and also urged the class, &uot;Make your nursing so that Caring and Acceptance of your Patients is your goal.&uot;

The ceremony recognized the successful completion of the students’ pre-clinical period and the beginning of their clinical rotations and more extensive involvement in patient care. Their clinical study will be conducted at Obici Hospital, local nursing homes, doctors’ offices and other health care facilities.

Noting the accomplishments of the students thus far, Ms. Sweat said, &uot;Realize that nursing is an art and a science, one that requires study, dedication and purpose. It requires the best of each nurse … Those who develop and practice a philosophy of excellence will succeed.&uot;

She said if 99.9 percent accuracy were acceptable, &uot;18,222 pieces of mail will be mishandled in the next hour, 22,000 checks will be deducted from the wrong bank account in the next 60 minutes … 1,314 phone calls will be misplaced by telecommunication services every minute.&uot;

Newly capped practical nursing students are: Blair Woodard Alderman of Courtland; Stephanie Anne Ballinger of Suffolk; Tanya Lynn Barbour of Ivor; Debra Latimer Boyd of Smithfield; Melinda Anne Chirico of Suffolk; Ellen Miles Cutchins of Sedley; Joni Lynn DeCosimo of Gates, N.C.; Tequilla Marie Harris of Norfolk; LaTasha Victoria Hathaway of Gatesville, N.C.; Catherine Michelle Holland of Franklin; Carmen Rene Spitzer of Virginia Beach; Mauricia Chamoise Timmons of Suffolk; Christina Marie White of Franklin; and Chantae LaTonya Young of Suffolk.

The School of Practical Nursing is a one-year program that begins each February.

Applications are being taken for the class that will begin in February 2005. Graduates are eligible to take the licensing exam, National Council Licensure Examination for Practical Nurses (NCLEX-PN), upon graduation and are eligible for articulation programs to colleges.

For more information, contact the school office at 934-4827 or visit www.obici.com/system/nurse_ed.asp.