For nearly 30 years, the focus for the College of Nursing at Brigham Young University has been to assist students in learning the Healer's art so they will first, emulate the principles, knowledge, attributes, and methods of the Master Healer, and, second, foster environments and processes to help others to be made whole. No matter what career paths they follow, BYU nurses share a common dedication to improving the health and the quality of life of individuals, families, and communities.
Just as scholars may analyze a poem by each line of the stanza, let's consider the parts of the previous statement as a way to connect the Healer's art and the Savior.
Section I
Emulate the Principles
President Spencer W. Kimball taught, "We will find it very difficult to be significant leaders unless we recognize the reality of the perfect leader, Jesus Christ, and let him be the light by which we see the way!"[1]
Fourth-semester nursing student Allison Lee shares how the Spirit recently taught her to seek inspiration in her work. "I try to reflect the college value inspiration by being receptive to the Spirit when I am with patients. There have been many times where the Spirit has spoken to me in the healthcare setting. On my first day of clinical last semester, a fellow nursing student and I had a patient who requested a carton of milk for breakfast. It seemed harmless and an easy task, and we were about to leave to get it. All of a sudden, I was stopped and reminded to check his diet. He needed thickened liquids and could have aspirated if we had given him that simple and seemingly harmless carton of milk. If the Spirit had not reminded me, I could have harmed this patient. It's so important always to be receptive to the whisperings of the Holy Ghost, especially as a nurse, because the little things can have serious consequences."
Emulating his example is the best way to follow the Savior. Another modern-day prophet, President Ezra Taft Benson, reminded us of this principle. "The most important thing in our lives is the Spirit. I have always felt that. We must remain open and sensitive to the promptings of the Holy Ghost in all aspects of our lives."[2]
Read the rest of the story on our blog at https://byunursing.wordpress.com/2021/07/06/the-healers-art-and-the-savior/