“Don’t let it happen again,” said Marianna Crane, my nurse practitioner friend. I could hear the disbelief in her voice. Marianna and I share a history of graduating from diploma schools of nursing in the early sixties. At that time, a visible hierarchy existed in health care. Doctors were treated like gods. And, even though Marianna …
Continue reading Therapeutic Communication Skills – An Essential in Health Care
The only thing I know is that I don't know. A thought attributed to Plato or Socrates (From my notes the last day of class, June 4, 2013)Today I want to give thanks for the University of Chicago's Basic Program of Liberal Education for Adults. And thanks for retirement years to be able to do …
Continue reading U of Chicago – Degree and Certificate Program Convocation Ceremony – 2013
I turned on my computer this morning to find this message: Congratulations on Saving Lives for 50 Years! Today marks the 50th anniversary of our graduation from BMH School of Nursing . Do you have any memories of that day? The greeting came from our committee chair for our fiftieth reunion that we're having next …
Nursing faculty: Are you planning textbooks for your fall courses? I invite you to consider Caring Lessons: A Nursing Professor's Journey of Faith and Self as a good choice for a recommended or required reading in courses related to career development. Caring Lessons chronicles my forty years in nursing, from diploma to PhD and nurse's …
Sentence in Poetry and Prose" was the catchy title faculty member Juliet Patterson chose for the week session I just completed at the Iowa Summer Writing Festival. The festival, held on the University of Iowa's campus in Iowa City, is enjoying its twenty-sixth year. Starting in 2001, I've attended the festival seven times and taken …
Continue reading “What’s Love Got to Do with It? A Field Guide to the…
I'm happy to present a recent Amazon review of Caring Lessons: A Nursing Professor's Journey of Faith and Self by Mary A. Osborne, nurse and author of Nonna's Book of Fiction, titled A Purpose Driven Life: It is an act of bravery to reveal one's life story in detail, to express one's struggles and fears …
Continue reading Review of Caring Lessons by Mary A. Osborne, Nurse and Author
As a caregiver, do you ever feel like screaming? I wanted to scream recently on a Grandma/Grandpa babysitting weekend. Wanting to scream is a natural response to frustrating experiences. So, another reason for writing your stories is to scream your words on the page, rather than hurling them into the air. Here’s a story I …
As a caregiver, you might be asking yourself, “Why write my caregiving stories?” I can think of several reasons that writing them would be good and fun. The first is to keep a record. All caregivers know that part of caregiving is keeping track of medications, treatments (changing dressings, taking blood pressures), doctors’ appointments, lab …
Lois, I was the single woman at [your grandniece's] wedding last fall. You sat at my table. As a 65-year-old, I quickly find a place to sit rather than stand in high-heels. I enjoyed our visit at the restaurant. When [your niece] gave me your book to read, I was quite impressed. I loved it! …
One day I was lamenting that I wasn't giving of myself like I used to do when I was teaching nursing. I felt pretty self-centered spending much of my day sequestered in my study. It was Amy, my volunteer publicist, that corrected me: "You're writing is your ministry now." Writing as my ministry. I'd never …
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