Samuel Southard

Nurses ask two kinds of questions about religion. The first is about the relation of religion to their own lives and might be illustrated with the question of one student nurse: "What will sustain us all through our nurses' preparation and positions later on?" The second type of question concerns patients' religion. One student inquired: "Do patients expect a nurse to be interested in their spiritual life, or do they just consider her 'nosy' if she asks about it?" This book has been written with both of these inquiries in mind. One purpose of the text is to lead the nurse toward sources of spiritual strength which will sustain her as she prepares for and pursues an exacting and challenging career. The second purpose is to relate religious resources to the nurse's work with patients. - Introduction.