Nightingale Songs was first published in 1990
as a way to share aesthetic expressions of nurses about their
nursing. The initial and continuing purpose of this publication is
to create a forum for nurses to share their silent moments of
reflection on their nursing. We intend that nurses who write for
these pages will both offer and receive encouragement and support
for the love of nursing. Work signed and submitted by nurse authors
is considered for publication.
Nightingale Songs
is free to be used for nursing; there is no intent to restrict
reproduction by copyright or in any other way. Although copying and
sharing of its contents is encouraged, it is important that authors
and the publication be acknowledged by appropriate citations. The
usual printing is 2000 copies; the mailing list exceeds 300 and
hundreds more are made available at professional conferences and in
classes each year. Nurses and others increasingly access Nightingale
Songs on the FAU College of Nursing Home Page.
New connections
among nurses for communicating their knowing of nursing have been
created by Nightingale Songs. During the weeks following
distribution of each issue many notes are received about the meaning
of the publication to nurses, and several new pieces of writing are
sent for review. Copies are circulated, posted on bulletin boards,
discussed in classes and read in presentations at professional
conferences. Poems have been uses as themes for Nurse Week events
and have been reproduced on bookmarks, note cards and banners to
celebrate nursing.
The Founding
Editors of Nightingale Songs are Marilyn Parker and Savina Schoenhofer. FAU nursing students and
faculty have provided production assistance and nursing faculty have
served as Guest Editors of two issues. The Editors have been
grateful for financial support from many nurses to assist with costs
of each issue, and to FAU College of Nursing for financing
publication of three issues.
It has been
wonderful to hear nurses tell stories never before told, stories for
which value seemed unknown before Nightingale Songs encouraged the
telling and re telling. We invite your responses to this forum and
encourage your aesthetic contribution to coming issues of
Nightingale Songs.
Marilyn Parker, Ph.D., RN
Editor
Professor and Associate Dean
mparker@fau.edu
College of Nursing, Florida Atlantic University
