Feedback on Fall

The article, "Caught!! Charting Ahead," created a whirlwind of emotion. Thank you for printing this article. It has given me strength and encouragement. I've been a nurse for twenty-one years. Early in my career, I experienced a horrible situation. Although I did not make a conscious decision to break laws, as did the nurse in the article, I made a serious mistake. Out of fear, it went unreported. When a colleague discovered the mistake, many discussions with management ensued.

Eaton writes about God's grace and its ability to allow her to see the error of her ways. So it was for me. Grace can turn you to the Lord and bring about repentance. The restoring factor was an administrator going to bat for me. She insisted that I not be fired but put on probation. This act of grace allowed me to continue my nursing career. She believed that I still had much to offer the nursing profession. I am grateful.

Without a doubt, there is a place for firing staff when serious infringements occur. However, I believe we must seriously weigh the facts in any given situation-sometimes the way of grace is much more powerful.

Stacey Lyev

Staten Island, NY

The theme of the fall 2003 issue-ethics at work- aptly described the situation nurses face every day. While ethics textbooks and courses tend to address topics such as cloning, gene therapy and assisted suicide, nurses wrestle daily with issues of moral integrity, care for voiceless patients and unsafe staffing. This issue included a helpful balance of theoretical articles with pragmatic applications. I particularly appreciated the courage of the author of "Caught!! Charting Ahead." Thank you for the reminder that God calls us to be faithful in the small things of every day, to do what we know to be right.

Sandra L. Jamison

Dillsburg, PA

Thank you so much for your recent issue on "Ethics At Work." The topic is very timely as I am presently dealing with this type of situation. I read this issue of JCN from cover to cover in one sitting. Thanks to each author who contributed to this helpful issue.

Kathy Bullock

Chesapeake, VA

I briefly looked at the summer and fall 2003 issues of JCN. They look wonderful. Thanks for producing a journal that touches on the spiritual aspects of nursing.

Michele O'Connor

Indianapolis, IN

More Letters on the Web

For a letter regarding "Medical Futility: When Is Enough, Enough?" and author, the Susan A. Salladay's, response, visit http://ncf.jcn.org and click on Letters to the Editor.

CNE in JCN

I have been exhausted from work as a psych RN. However, really reading each article in JCN in preparation for CNE testing was refreshing and renewing. Thank you for a great journal.

Carol Taylor

Streator, IL

Vacation with JCN

I am a current subscriber and thoroughly enjoy reading JCN cover to cover, especially while on vacation. JCN has been my holiday companion and the source of my nursing refueling for years. Articles are written by American and Canadian nurses who love the Lord and who are finding new ways to integrate their faith with their nursing practice. These stories nourish my calling to nursing.

Perhaps God will nudge more nurses in BC to subscribe as a result of this letter.

Kathy Johnson

Port Coquitlam, BC, Canada

Great Find

After being in nursing almost thirty years, I was excited to hear about Nurses Christian Fellowship and JCN when I attended a conference on parish nursing in Wichita three years ago. I look forward to each issue of JCN. Each article is interesting and uplifting and encourages me in the day-to-day work of caring for my patients and showing them God's love in a small way. We can all learn from others' experiences, and the articles are very enriching. I share my magazine at work with other believers and they benefit from it as well. I continue telling others about NCF and JCN.

Wanda Delehoy

Hutchinson, KS

Making Sense of Complementary & Alternative Therapies

After thirty years in nursing, I am taking an MSN course. I have been amazed and somewhat dismayed by the enthusiastic responses to all forms of CAM and to the eclectic spirituality promoted in nursing today, especially in the advanced abstract nursing theories. As an evangelical Christian, my opinions are often opposite those of my classmates, even some who claim Christianity. I was beginning to think that my aversion to energy therapy was maybe not from the Lord, but from my own biased opinions. I was glad to read this whole journal issue (fall 2001) and discover there are other Christians who think as I do.

Ruby Riesland

Fort Harrison, MT

COMMENT ON A STORY

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Letters

JCN

P.O. Box 7895

Madison, WI 53707-7895

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COMING SOON

The next few issues will include articles on these topics:

* Responsible Documentation

* A Christian Vision for Nursing

* Thriving in Today's Workplace

* Spiritual Assessment and Intervention