SuzieF

Hi Here I Stand, It is great to connect with you here. It is good to meet other Christian nurses that are standing firm in the faith. I know that if I did not have my faith to keep me moving forward in nursing, I don't know where I would be today. It makes all of the difference in the world to me. Sometimes God allows me to have those moments of a lifetime with my patients...I live for those. Other times, I trust that he is working through me even when I am unaware. I had not thought about or heard from Ray Comfort in a long while. He rocks, doesn't he? I have to be honest and say that I do not know what "VOMedical" is? Can you enlighten me?

mdyoung, I am so sorry for your loss. I can only imagine how difficult losing a grandchild must have been. I am so glad you where touch by the compassion expressed by the nurse. As a veteran nurse of 18 years, I can tell you that I am very often touched by family members, because it is easy to put yourself in their place. May God bless you as you journey into our beloved nursing profession. I know that you will surely be able to provide the same professional and compassionate care that your family received for others in their time of greatest need. Best wishes!

JesusKeepMe, Thanks for the uplighting post. It is always thrilling to hear someone so enthusiastically share about their faith in Christ. I can remember when I came into an awareness of who He is and the love He has for us all so, I was so overjoyed and saw life from a completely new perspective. It was as if a new dimension had opened up in my life. Well, really it did. I had my "V-8 moment" as I like to say. I agree with you. Life is not a cake walk after you become a Christian; we all may still struggle with sin. However, after finding real purpose and meaning through Christ, we can have strength through Him, as well. Be blessed and continue to walk strongly in your faith!

Thanks for stopping by Jaynie_Marie! I am excited for you as you step into your future in nursing. It is wonderful to have nurses with hearts such as yours. It makes the world and our profession a much better place! Blessings to you! SuzieF.

Hi PurpleViolet, Thanks for stopping by this thread. It is always great to know of other Christian nurses who are walking their careers out through the light of their faith. It is nice to know that you will pray with your Christian patients and when appropriate. I do not know of any support groups for nurses per say. I welcome you to "friend me" in this discussion board. We can also connect that way if you like. I agree with you when you say that you don't know how you could fair in your job if it were not for your relationship with God. He most definitely is the source of my strength and passion for nursing. Take care! May God continue to bless your work! SuzieF

Thank you for your feedback! Most appreciated.

Hi SlimM26, I am glad that you are choosing to walk out your faith in the service of nursing. Yes, God does see your heart and knows your honest desire. Rest in knowing that if your heart is set on serving the Lord through a career in nursing, then look at each day of school, every clinical situation, and the countless hours of studying as a form of worship of Him. "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters,since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving." Colossians 3:23-24 Respectfully, Suzie

I am glad that I could help. I just share things that work for me. Thank you for the prayers! I appreciate them tremendously! Blessings! Suzie

Hi Raynelle, Congrats on beginning nursing school. It is fantastic that you are thinking ahead as to how you wil find time for devotion and drawing nearer to God through Christ. You are sooooo wise to do this first above all else. You are likely to have times when everything seems overwhelming, just hang in there. Make the decision in advance that nothing will come before your relationship with The Lord.(which it seems like you have already) I know how it is in school. As a matter fact, I am back in school now. I have to ease up on the bigger Bible studies while I am going to school. I have a group of other nurses that I study with on a fairly regular basis. This is a tremendous encouragement to stay motivated and in the Word. We keep it relax. You may wish to pray and ask God to connect you with other Christians in your class. They may also like to do a little devo time with you before a class or study session. I use You Version Bible app on my phone. I can then pull it out anytime I have a couple of minutes. Try this even if you only focus on the verse of the day. Listen to sermons and worship music while you are getting ready or driving to class. Keep your Bible by your bed for a quick read in the morning or before bed. Just keep exposing your mind to His truth in bite size pieces. Pray without ceasing. Pray before you feet even hit the floor in the morning. Pray little short prayers silently throughout the day. Once you find fellw Christians in class, ask them to join you early for prayer on test days. You can simply read a per written prayer if you like. It just matters that you are putting God first. His heart will be blessed no matter what form your devotion and prayer is in. Above all, begin to pray now and tell Him your concerns of not having balance in your life. Commit your schooling and your nursing service to The Lord from the very beginning. Pray that He will be honored through your work. Then as things get hectic -and they will- you can rest easy that you are doing it all in devotion to God. Your work be be your worship of Him. (Colossians 3:23) You are guaranteed to draw closer to The Lord. Raynelle, basically Keep God first, pray often, and read the Bible when you can. Set your heart on serving Him. He will take care of the rest. Best wishes! You will have a life transformation when you become a nurse. it is exciting! i will be praying for you. I am sure that you will do awesome! Suzie

Greetings and blessings to you!

Hi Melissa! I am so excited for you as you begin your adventure into the wonderful world of nursing. Your life will be transformed in a remarkable and fulfilling way. Just let the love and light of Christ radiate through you, and be prepared to provide an answer to those who ask about the source of your hope and strength. People will indeed recognize your joy and be attracted to it. You live right down the road from me. I live in Pensacola. Message me if you would like to have coffee sometime. Best Wishes!

Hey Underoo! Thank you for connecting with me. I will be contacting you for sure. Blessings, Suzie

I have said a prayer for everyone in this thread today... May God's light and hope radiate through you! May you be a conduit of hope for your patients!

Congrats Kimberly!

I have never heard of a patient experiencing anything like this before. Did you ask the patient what was his interpretation of the dream? He may know deep down inside.

Hey FSUNurse2b, I am sorry for the delay in responding to your question. Although I am not actually a member for the NCF at this time, I have been in the past. With the membership, your wife would receive the Journal of Christian Nursing. It is a wonderful resource for Christian nurses. There are also chapters in various cities and on college campus. The nurses have the opportunity to share in fellowship and Bible study together. Also, of course, they put on Christian nurses conferences. I will be able to share more details when I get back from Asheville. Take care! SuzieF.

FSUns2b, Not to worry, you will find that there are plenty of Christ followers in nursing. You will also probably find more outspoken Christians in nursing than banking. As you can see from the comments posted on your thread, nurses are pretty outspoken and spirited by nature. The fact that you seem comfortable with your own spirituality is good. Humans are spiritual beings. Recognition of this about yourself will help you be more attentive to your patients needs. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Joint Commission have set expectations that these needs be addressed by health professionals (nurses). I know for sure that the WHO has even developed a spirituality assessment tool. So, your question is very applicable to a "Nursing & Spirituality" forum for nurses. No, need to go to a Christian forum to ask these types of questions. I welcome them. Suzie

I switched to the ER 3 years ago after many, many years in critical care and med surg. I can tell you that ER folks are a different breed. Their exteriors are tough due to the nature of the job/environment. Hang in there, because once you get to know them, you will find out that generally they are really loyal to patients and other team members. Be confident of the good skills/experience that you have already. Even though you should not be expected to "up to speed" right out of the gate, ER folks want to know you are tough enough for the work. Remember, they thought enough of you to pick you for the job in the first place. Best wishes! Suzie

I wanted to share an announcement regarding a conference hosted by the Nurses Christian Fellowship. The day/date is Saturday, April 13, 2013 at West Carolina University's Biltmore Park Campus in Asheville, NC. I will be traveling there with several other nurses from Florida. If you plan on attending, please let me know and we can hook up. Here is a link for more information: Nurses Christian Fellowship Conference

I really started feeling this way after the first few weeks when the newness had worn off. The "honeymoon" was over. I wondered what in the world I had gotten myself into. But, I hung in there. That was about 18 years ago.

FSUNS2b, TNbutterfly was right on in her posts. I concur 100%. It would be interesting to do a study (if not already done) on the prevalence of Christians in nursing as compared to the general population. However, are we talking about those who consider themselves part of the Christian "tradition" or the evangelical Christians? We would also probably want to know to what degree the nurses faith guides/inspires his or her practice. The JCN or another may have already published something on this. But, I am interested in teaming with someone to research it, if not. I also believe it would be interesting to study the percentages of Christian missions (hospitals, rehabs, food banks, etc.) nationally and internationally as compared non-christian. These are just my thoughts. I believe you are wise (and brave!) for taking part in these discussions and asking tough questions before you even begin. It seems to me that you have the makings of a great nurse. But, expect folks to get their feathers ruffled when you start talking about faith-Christianity in particular. Best wishes, Suzie

I never learned how to assess a patient's spiritual needs when I was in college years ago. I am wondering if other nurses have been taught this in nursing school. Also, are you receiving ongoing educational support through your employer or other program?

Hi jaand. I am sorry, but I just saw this post. I would have responded sooner if I had seen your post/request. It may be too late for you to gather information for your assignment, but I thought I would respond anyway. 1. My name is Suzie Farthing 2. Where do you work? I work in an Emergency / Trauma Center 3. What is your position? Triage Liaison/ RN, I also have many years of experience in multiple aspects of hospital nursing. 4. Explain the function, roles, and responsibilities of your position. Primary triage assessment of patients presenting through the front door of the ED. 5. How do you provide spiritual care to a person who is experiencing an illness/injury? Please list a few examples. First in my work environment, I assess the physical needs first and prioritize the patients needs from life threatening to less acute. Only once I am sure these needs are taken care of do I look deeper into what may be going on with the patient. Sometimes (really often), the psychosocial and spiritual distress issues are the main cause of the patient's complaints. Once the physical distress/illness is under control, then I offer support of the spiritual needs (and contact SW for other life issues). If the Patient isa Christian, I am comfortable offering support through scripture, praying with the patient and simply listening. If the patient is of another faith, I contact our hospital's chaplain, so they can see to it that the patient is support. I have to say that in the ED, everything is compressed due to the nature of the environment. However, when I have worked in the ICU and on Med/Surg units my support of the patient is the same, only I have the luxury of more time with the patient to properly assess the needs. 5. How do you provide spiritual care for the family of a person who is experiencing an illness/injury? After the patient is taken care of, I pretty much do the same as #4. 6. How do you feel that you are able to enhance the healing environment for the person who is sick/injured and his/her family? I feel strongly that when nurses have the opportunity or take the opportunity to assess and support the spiritual needs of patients, healing for patients and families occurs on many levels- physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual. I have personally witnessed unexplainable recoveries occur after spiritual needs have been addressed. Best wishes, Suzie

I agree. This is a wonderfully informative post on a subject we don't hear much about as nurses, but may have some interest in. I am going to share this with my brother- in - law who is a camp director at a Salvation Army Camp in Michigan. This will help him better understand his nurses needs. Awesome post on camp nursing.