When the clinic first opened last year, Margaret would saunter in holding Josie’s hand, pulling her along. While Margaret’s stringy hair and disheveled clothes reflected an indifference to her own appearance, Josie always looked neat. Like a treasured, well cared for doll. Her deeply wrinkled face blank but her blue eyes held a sparkle. She…… Continue reading VANISHED Part 2 of 3
Author: Marianna Crane
After a long career in nursing--I was one of the first certified gerontological nurse practitioners--I am now a writer. My writings center around patients I have had over the years that continue to haunt my memory unless I record their stories. In addition, I write about growing older, confronting ageism, creativity and food.
My memoir, "Stories from the Tenth Floor Clinic: A Nurse Practitioner Remembers" is available where ever books are sold.
VANISHED Part 1 of 3
A feverish Chicago summer ebbed into autumn. No telltale falling leaves signaled the change of seasons on this block of concrete walkways surrounding the massive twenty-story apartment building. I yanked open the heavy door. Inside the foyer, through the grimy glass doors, I noticed Margaret parking Josie, in her wheelchair, in front of the elevator.…… Continue reading VANISHED Part 1 of 3
UNCONVENTIONAL NURSING
NAKED IN THE LABOR/DELIVERY ROOM Written by Ruth Donoghue Time: December in the early ‘90’s. Place: Nursery in a Catholic hospital where 5,000 babies pass through in a year. The call came from unit secretary. A nurse was requested as soon as possible to pick up a baby in delivery/labor room three. (Every…… Continue reading UNCONVENTIONAL NURSING
TRICK OR TREAT AT THE FRONT DOOR; HEARSE AT THE BACK
I have been pestering my classmates from nursing school (we are about to celebrate our fiftieth anniversary next month) to write their stories so I can post them on my blog. Maybe pestering is too mild a word. Regardless, I have succeeded. Two women have sent me stories. The first comes from Joan Moore. This…… Continue reading TRICK OR TREAT AT THE FRONT DOOR; HEARSE AT THE BACK
AN ODE TO THE BEST HOUSE ON THE BLOCK
Nurses who make home visits will be able to relate to this. I scan houses I would like to visit—to see not only who lives in them but how they live. What health problems or social issues would I have to address? I took a picture of this house on the west side of Chicago…… Continue reading AN ODE TO THE BEST HOUSE ON THE BLOCK
WHY DO WE WRITE?
I attended the book signing this past August. Farther Along, written by my friend and mentor, Carol Henderson, which told the stories of thirteen mothers (she is one of them), a bakers dozen as Carol points out, who had lost children at various ages. I was prepared to cry. I don’t do well with death…… Continue reading WHY DO WE WRITE?
MOUNTAIN MAN: A NURSING STORY
I graduated from nursing school fifty years ago this month. I still remember this man. The long, dark hall stretched out in front of me. It was eleven-thirty in the evening, close to the end of my shift. The thick soles of my Red Cross shoes silenced my step as I checked each room on…… Continue reading MOUNTAIN MAN: A NURSING STORY
THE AMERICAN NURSE PROJECT
The American Nurse Project aims to elevate and celebrate nurses in this country by capturing their personal stories through photography and film. Photographer Carolyn Jones and her team traveled to every corner of the U.S. to record the unique experiences of nurses at work. The photographs and narratives shed light on what it means to…… Continue reading THE AMERICAN NURSE PROJECT
CARING AND THE MALE NURSE
Back in the ‘80s I ran a clinic for the elderly that was housed in an apartment on the tenth floor of a Chicago high rise. My patients came to see me, a nurse practitioner, in the office but in many instances I would later check up on them in their apartments in the building…… Continue reading CARING AND THE MALE NURSE
WHAT DOES PEA SOUP HAVE TO DO WITH WRITING?
It’s a soup day. Well, okay, it’s 76 degrees outside on this August morning in Chapel Hill but it’s dark and dreary. The sound of the rain hitting the roof makes me think of soup. Thoughts of the warm aroma of Grandma’s bean soup and the sweet, earthy taste of Mom’s chicken soup, made with the…… Continue reading WHAT DOES PEA SOUP HAVE TO DO WITH WRITING?
