“In the middle of chaos, a patient once whispered, ‘Thank you for seeing me.’ And I’ve never forgotten that.”
Source: Mind the Bedpan : Tales of a Filipina Nurse Lost (and Found) in the NHS
“It’s hard, isn’t it? But it was always drummed into us during training that the patients and their families are the absolute priority. And our own feelings come way down the list.”
Source: Changing Seasons for the Country Nurse
“So what's a nurse? [...]
Basically someone who does all the work of helping people without any of the credit.”
Source: The Midwizard of Cosconia
“...Or we can blaze! Become legends in our own time, strike fear in the heart of mediocre talent everywhere! We can scald dogs, put records out of reach! Make the stands gasp as we blow into an unearthly kick from three hundred yards out! We can become God's own messengers delivering the dreaded scrolls! We can race dark Satan himself till he wheezes fiery cinders down the back straightaway....They'll speak our names in hushed tones, 'those guys are animals' they'll say! We can lay it on the line, bust a gut, show them a clean pair of heels. We can sprint the turn on a spring breeze and feel the winter leave our feet! We can, by God, let our demons loose and just wail on!”
Source: Once a Runner
“There ain't no feelin' in the world like takin' on somebody wilted and near bout gone, and you do what you can, and then all a-sudden the pore thang starts to put out new growth and git well.”
Source: Cold Sassy Tree
“The most important pratical lesson that can be given to nurses is to teach them what to observe-how to observe-what symptoms indicate improvement-what the reverse-which are of importance-which are of none-which are the evidence of neglect-and of what kind of neglect.”
Source: Notes on Nursing: What it Is, and what it is Not
“While burnout obviously has something to do with stress, overdoing things, not being centred, and not listening to yourself or your body, one of the deepest contributors to burnout, I believe, is the deep disappointment of not living up to your true calling, which is to help.”
Source: Helping Effortlessly: A Book of Inspiration and Healing
“I work at a retirement home. I'm a CNA.”
“What's that?”
“It stands for Certified Nursing Assistant.”
“That sounds important,” I said.
She laughed. “If changing old people's diapers is important.”
I thought for a moment, then said, “It is for the old people.”
Source: The Broken Road
“Whether women work in the care sector because the wages are low or whether wages are low because women work there is a question that cannot be answered. But we know that a big reason for economic inequality is that women to a much greater extent work with care.”
Source: Who Cooked Adam Smith's Dinner? A Story About Women and Economics
“It is impossible to describe exactly what I learn, though I know it lies somewhere between science and art. It is all about the smallest details and understanding how they make the biggest difference.”
Source: The Language of Kindness: A Nurse's Story