Monthly Circle - Loss and Grief in Nursing

Our Nursing Community has come together to create space for supporting each other as we traverse the loss, grief and sorrows we face in our work of caring for others. Open to all, and please know we will continue to find ways to make this more available to various schedules and commitments.  

Moved one week due to Thanksgiving.

Wednesday, 11/29 - 1 PM PST / 4 PM EST 

1 Hour Event

Creative Caring at the Bedside: Music as Medicine

Join us for an interactive workshop with Cathy DeWitt, Musician in Residence for UF Arts in Medicine, Healing Arts Medicine LLC, and Legends  Memory Care at Windsor; Certified International Harp Therapist; International Award-winning Musician and former Music Teacher.

What are the ways music can be brought into different kinds of healthcare settings and situations, and what do you need to know to do it successfully?

From Cathy: 30 years ago I made an unexpected journey that turned into an incredibly rewarding career—playing music in a hospital for a new program called Arts in Medicine. This program is now internationally renowned in its field, but when it was brand new we were all flying by the seat of our pants!  It was definitely on-the-job training.  After all this time, I learned a lot, defined the boundaries and scope of my practice, and am here now to share stories, songs, tips. and tools of the trade for both artists and caregivers.  Discover:

• The difference between music therapists and other kinds of music practitioners
• The relationship between preference and repertoire
• When and why it can be best to play non-familiar (improvised) or familiar music
• Why music is such a powerful tool for people with Alzheimers, dementia and other memory disorders
• Interactive engagement versus performance…where each is appropriate
• The value of creating a playlist for our loved ones –and ourselves!—to be used in times of stress, to create change, and when verbal communication becomes limited by severe illness, trauma, or end of life.

We will also explore the sounds of different instruments, how music can create community and change moods, and the joy of manifesting a soundscape and a song together.

Completed - Recording coming soon

Poetry - A Perscription for What Ails You

Nurse poet, author, healer and educator Paulina Van will be joining us to talk about the healing power of poetry. She will read poetry and share AI-generated art, using words from her poems.  She will share evidence of the healing and relaxing effects of reading or listening to poetry.

Her book Regala Healing is an authentic exploration of the human condition that has been described as "timeless songs to see again, feel again, to live again” and a "hypnotic and engaging journey of self-acceptance, self-love and self-transcendence”.

Completed

Nurses as Healers & Story Tellers

Returning to healing, returning to the well; an invitation to think about how we keep well-being relevant in settings that may not be the most conducive for healing.  We will look at storytelling as a way to engage in health for all of us. 

Tim Cunningham, RN, DrPH, MSN, FAAN, Co-Chief Well-Being Officer, Woodruff Health Sciences, Emory University and Board President Clowns Without Boarders 

Completed - Recording Available