Nursing 1000: a mosaic of lessons learned from patients

Throughout my nursing career, I have been most grateful for the education and lessons that I received from the many gifted women and men faculty in the nursing programs I attended. From learning how to give a bed bath and intramuscular injections to writing a doctoral research proposal, the information, wisdom, guidance, and resources they shared with me are invaluable. I also am fortunate to have had the privilege of caring for many patients from whom I also learned invaluable lessons. Together, this latter group of women and men formed the faculty of Nursing 1000. They are the patients who were instrumental in shaping me and my nursing career. Many of them are no longer alive, and all of our paths have diverged, yet they remain influential in how I work with patients on a daily basis. The lessons they taught me form a most special montage. This mosaic article is a way to share with others what the faculty of Nursing 1000 taught me. It is also, in a small way, a tribute to all of the unique men and women with whom, as a nurse, I have shared transpersonal caring experiences and from whom I have learned much. The faculty of Nursing 1000 is composed of a variety of patients for whom I cared and who taught me valuable lessons that guided me in how to better care for patients in the future. Although the Nursing 1000 faculty are no longer physically part of my life, each day they continue to influence how I interact with others. The lessons they taught form a very special mosaic. To protect their confidentiality, all patient names are pseudonyms.