You can't really know where you are going until you know where you have been. Maya Angelou [1] Ah! Here's a good place, I think. Let's stop for a minute.' Little encouragement is needed; there's a click, shuffle, and thump as backpacks are unfastened and straps are shrugged off shoulders down to...
Today, as been one of the busiest shifts in my memory. It has been chaotic and unsafe. Yet, this I call to mind. This I put on my lips… 'I believe that you are Sovereign ' I put my trust in you. Today, I have prayed for healing but then watched my...
When I answered the phone I would say, 'A&E, student nurse speaking'. Which was short for, 'Accident and Emergency, I'm answering the phone because I'm closest and want to be proactive, but don't ask me anything too complicated or expect too much from me. I'm still learning!'. Was it just...
That first drug error The first time you cry on shift The first complaint made about you And the first patient that you lose. The funeral you attend And the safeguarding case That first crash call you put out And the incident form you fill in. Gosh, we never forget these firsts. They shape our first years qualified and they...
One of the most horrifying scandals ever to hit the NHS was that of Lucy Letby, a neonatal nurse who was found to have killed seven babies in her care and attempted to murder six more. We cannot even begin to imagine the grief the families involved in this case must...
There's no stained glass here. No daylight streaming through a serene Jesus looking down from his cross. In fact, there's no natural light at all. Just four windowless walls boxing me into the belly of the hospital. An artificial glow hums and flickers, making night and day indistinguishable to its...
In Romans 15:13, New Living Translation, it says: 'I pray that God, the source of hope will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.' Not overstretched. Not overrunning. Not overworked, over, and over...
We're coming to the end of our 'force for hope' recruitment campaign, where we've been raising the profile of the fellowship and growing our membership. Praise God we're now up to 460 members, and we're having our first in-person NAMfest event this Spring. We genuinely believe that we are stronger when...
Pippa Peppiatt has edited Spotlight for six years, thinking carefully about content, writing thoughtful articles, and encouraging both experienced nursing and midwifery writers and novices to contribute too. What big shoes I step into, as I now have the delight and privilege of taking over as Spotlight editor. Thank you,...
Propping the staff room door open with her foot, Maria leans out into the corridor and shouts, 'Bex! You coming for lunch soon?'. When I finally pull myself away, it's gone 4 pm. 'I did make you a cup of tea' Maria gestures to the cup nearest me, 'it might be...