As a new nurse, one of the ways I learned about how to become a “real” nurse was by listening to the “campfire” or “war” stories. After a few years, I found myself sharing my own stories: the one about the patient with the temporary pulse generator aimed at the television, trying to change the channel, or the time when an entire hospital system mobilized to save a mother and her unborn quadruplets. Each of these stories had a nugget that I could take away and apply to my daily practice as a nurse.
Inspired to Change is a collection of stories, good and bad, that demonstrate many aspects of health care today. The stories are catalysts for action. They motivate us to look at our patients and their families from their perspective, to empathize with their experience, and to be changed by that new knowledge.
The topics range from...