What about when you conduct a mid-afternoon assessment on that cardiac patient? Plenty of observations come to mind as you do the examination, but do you share them with the patient?

According to Sandy and Harry Jacobs Summers, authors of Saving Lives: Why the Media's Portrayal of Nurses Puts Us All at Risk, that might be a good idea. "These are teachable moments that can help patients and their families understand the critical thinking and science nurses bring to patient care," the Summers' say.

There are so many things, some of them seemingly insignificant, that nurses can do to broadcast their important work.

For example:

• when you walk into a patient's room, introduce yourself by name and tell him you are a registered nurse.
• start a program at your hospital to have medical students shadow a nurse several times (they do this at Dartmouth University medical school.).
• if you see an image of a nurse that is inaccurate, make your opinion known. According to the Summers' one nurse can make a difference. "When OR nurse Francine Brock of Placentia, CA, visited Las Vegas in 2006, she saw IGT's Nurse Follies slot machine, which features naughty nurse and battle-axe imagery. She wrote to Wynn Las Vegas. The casino quickly began converting its eight to 10 Nurse Follies slot machine to another theme, at a cost of $2,000 per machine." (Not everyone gets these quick results, but it's worth a try, the Summers' advise.)
• of course, you can always do the typical talk at your child's school on what nursing is like. There's nothing like reaching the impressionable mind and planting the idea about a rewarding profession.

I have never been one for reading memoirs. That may be because contemporary tell-all autobiographies of Hollywood personalities too young to have much to say are so predictable.

Thinking exclusively of contemporary memoirs and forgetting some of the great historical autobiographies I have read, it was with great reluctance that I volunteered to spearhead the September book club discussions for ADVANCE Book Club for Nurses on the memoir Kate: The Journal of a Confederate Nurse by Kate Cumming.

What a surprise to discover the biography of an obscure historic figure is a different read altogether. It had drama, pathos, bloody battles, deprivation, and social and political commentary - and refreshingly, no sex, except commentaries by Kate on the feigned fragility of some Southern women.

Being a Yankee, born and bred, it was an eye-opener to me to read Cumming's views on slavery, saying slaves were happier in that state than free. It was also interesting to read about her ideas of nursing and her dedication to her patients whether they were Confederate soldiers or Union prisoners.

Coincidentally, after reading this book, I made a trip to Richmond, VA, where we stumbled upon a beautiful park that housed the Chimborazo Medical Museum. Among the many books offered at the museum gift shop was a memoir by Susie King Taylor, a former slave, who did some nursing in the South for Union and black soldiers during the Civil War.

Having learned my lesson about the pleasure of a well-written memoir, I bought the book with the  ridiculously long title, A Black Woman's Civil War Memoirs: Reminiscences of My Life in Camp with the 33d U.S. Colored Troops, Late 1st S. C. Volunteers, published in 1902.

During the Civil War, King Taylor moved with other freed blacks and former slaves from one South Carolina or Georgia island to another. She recounts caring for patients with "varioloid," smallpox, in 1863 and being unafraid because she had been vaccinated. She tells of nursing injured soldiers, concentrating her efforts on providing them with good nourishment. King Taylor had little to improvise with and concocted a custard from turtle eggs and condensed milk, saying the men "enjoyed it very much."

She meets Clara Barton, who would later found the American Red Cross, in a Beaufort, SC, hospital, which King Taylor visited several times. "Miss Barton was always very cordial toward me, and I honored her for her devotion and care for these men."

Don't be like me; don't hesitate to pick up Kate: The Journal of a Confederate Nurse by Kate Cumming. You'll be glad you did. The discussion on this book begins in earnest Sept. 9 with a podcasted interview with Chris Foard, MSN, RN, a nursing historian with an impressive collection of nursing memorabilia. In addition to the podcast, Foard will share some of his collection, including a letter from Clara Barton, in a video on this site.

It's odd how things happen coincidentally. As I was reading Saving Lives: Why the Media's Portrayal of Nurses Puts Us All at Risk, which was raising my consciousness as to nursing's image, Nurse Jackie and HawthoRNe debuted on TV. Suddenly nurses from all over the country were weighing in with their opinions on how these two shows portray the profession. Their comments kept bringing me back to points made in Saving Lives by authors Sandy Summers, MSN, MPH, RN, & Harry Jacobs Summers.

You look at both shows in a whole different light having read Saving Lives. You also look at a lot of other portrayals of nursing in a new way. After all, you go to a hospital mostly for nursing care, not physician or therapy care. Yet, the Summer's point out all kinds of ways nurses are dissed in entertainment and news media.

They refer to the fact more nurses volunteer to work in Doctors Without Borders programs than any other medical professional, yet nursing is not in its name. In fact the organization has refused to consider a name change that more accurately reflects its membership. They champion an op-ed piece in 2006 in the Baltimore Sun, calling for a Nobel Prize for nurses.

Sandy and Harry Summers describe the various nursing stereotypes from the angel of mercy, to the handmaiden, to the naughty nurse (as portrayed by one nurse in HawthoRNe), to the battleaxe (witness Nurse Ratched in One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest). They seem to have seen all the TV shows and movies portraying nurses or with nurse characters.

You have got to read this book and join in the discussions, which begins Nov. 4 and features a podcasted interview with both authors, who are husband and wife. Join me in the discussions and we'll have a ball seeking even more solutions to creating positive images of nursing.

I always read the first line of a book before devoting my time to it. If it's creative and pulls me to the next sentence, I'll read the book. I also have a habit of dog-earing pages within a book to mark eloquent passages that resonate within me. In the case of Three Cups of Tea, I was hooked from page one and my book looks like a worn college textbook with all the pencil marks and turned over corners I've spread throughout it. Not only is it a book that you should read, but it's one you should share with 10 of your closest friends. It speaks to the goodness found in others and the inspiration you can dedicate to your family, profession and community.

I want to share some of my favorite passages to give you a glimpse into the life of a truly incredible nurse and the humble men, women and children living in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

• During the last decade, since a series of failures and accidents transformed him from a mountaineer to a humanitarian, [Greg] Mortenson has attracted what has to be one of the most underqualified and overachieving staffs of any charitable organization on earth.

• Word of his work spread and the sick on the outskirts of Korphe began sending relatives to fetch "Dr. Greg," as he would thereafter be known in northern Pakistan, no matter how many times he tried to tell people he was just a nurse.

• "I sat in the corner staring at this shrouded figure," Mortenson says. "She looked so small, draped in her cloth. And I remember thinking how amazing it was that such a tiny person had such a huge effect on humanity." (Mortenson's thoughts on paying his respects at the side of Mother Teresa.

• Mortenson stood up, trying to imagine what Haji Ali would say at such a moment, at such a black time in history, when all that you cherished was as breakable as an egg. His words came drifting back with an hallucinogenic clarity. "Listen to the wind." ... He heard it whistling down the Braldu Gorge carrying rumors of snow and the season's death. But in the breeze whipping across this fragile shelf where humans survived, somehow, in the high Himalaya, he also heard the musical trill of children's voices, at play in the courtyard of Korphe's school. Here was this last lesson, Mortenson realized, stabbing at the hot tears with his fingertips. "Think of them," he thought. "Think always of them."

I'd love to hear about some of your favorite passages in the book. What moved and inspired you?

And if you haven't read the book, here's the first sentence: "The little red light had been flashing for five minutes before Bhangoo paid it any attention."

Enjoy the book or share your copy with someone else. It's a must read.

Be sure to visit our Book Club home page. 

You are given 6 months to live.

What would you do with that precious time? Would you travel? Finally take that dream vacation with your loved ones?

Professor and author Randy Pausch didn't spend his precious time traveling the dream, but he did write about his dreams.

Although he lost his battle with pancreatic cancer in July 2008 at the young age of 47, Pausch's final months were spent writing the world-renowned book, The Last Lecture.

Throughout each chapter, Pausch colorfully describes his childhood dreams, some of which he was able to fulfill, such as becoming a Disney Imagineer, winning stuffed animals and playing Captain Kirk.

His book is not so much about death as it is how to live your life. It was Pausch who said, "brick walls are there for a reason - to show how badly we want something." His awe-inspiring attitude toward facing imminent death with a rare sense of humor shames those of us who are healthy, but riddled with chronic complaining and pessimistic outlooks. Most of us have dreams that remain idle thoughts in closed minds much like a photo in a digital camera waiting for someone else to come along and produce it.

Pausch produced The Last Lecture, not only in book form, but as a live presentation at Carnegie Mellon University's annual lecture event. Now viewable on YouTube, the site has generated millions of hits from across the world. In his book, Pausch articulated the humor and intelligence that made his lecture a global phenomena.

As a professor of computer science, human computer interaction and design at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pausch loved his work. While his work brought many joys to his shortened life, his three young children and devoted wife Jai Pausch were his greatest joys. And it was Jai who lived her own journey, far from a dream, as she cared for her children and accompanied her husband on his many medical appointments across five states.

Although she is not a nurse, it was Jai's experience with her dying husband that brought to life the tireless work of the many nurses who nurtured her husband. She agreed to share her story as way to "give back to the medical community" for their professionalism, support, knowledge and compassion. Jai said that she always had positive experiences with nurses who were always warm and she never felt rushed. She said she was even trained to clean Randy's PICC line even though she admits to being "very squeamish about blood and needles" prior to her husband's illness. Jai said the common quality of all the nurses she encountered and interacted with was not only that they cared about people, but that they were able to "be in the moment" and not let their own personal issues interfere with their patient.

In her first podcast interview since her husband's death, Jai shares how she leaned on and learned from hospital nurses, home health and hospice nurses to help her counsel and prepare her children, and how to live those last few months, weeks and days with her dying husband. But she also talks about today and the bridge that will be built in Randy's honor at Carnegie Mellon, and how she keeps her husband's memory alive with her children, and her work with Pancreatic Action Network. With the help of the medical community, Jai learned how to make the best choices today, how to balance her energy and how not to let fear paralyze her every move.

In one of his many poignant words, Randy said, "It's about seizing every moment, because time is all we have."

Join us for a story that will fill your heart with hope, appreciation and optimism, and just might jump start the desire to fulfill those childhood dreams sitting idle in your heart.

Imagine taking your childhood dreams and turning them into a global reality that results in saving lives all over the world.

In his book, Mountains Beyond Mountains, The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, A Man Who Would Cure the World, Pulitzer Prize winning author Tracy Kidder shows how one person can make a difference. More specifically, Farmer wanted to make a difference in the lives of the unfortunate ... the poor and the imprisoned. He was and very much still is the hero for the underdog.

I had the opportunity of interviewing Kidder who traveled with Farmer for several years shadowing his work as an international public healthcare physician. From Haiti and Peru to Cuba and Russia, Farmer trekked the globe caring and curing for patients with TB, AIDS and other infectious diseases.

Farmer is also a Harvard professor, renowned infectious disease specialist and anthropologist, who was brought up in a bus and on a boat. He lived the underdog life so to speak as a child. By the time he became an educated adult, he could relate to the patients he served and it was his empathy that helped him open doors, eyes and hearts.

He found his life's calling in medical school: to diagnose and cure infectious diseases and to bring the lifesaving tools of modern medicine to those who needed it most - those without health insurance and money.

After I finished reading Mountains Beyond Mountains, I felt sort of sad and found myself longing to experience the adventures alongside Kidder and Farmer. It's definitely one of those books that take on a life of its own. And it's certainly a book that could easily be successful as a movie.

It has all the elements of a great story: travel, romance, struggle, international intrigue, lifesaving measures and the scenery of the majestic mountains in Peru to the disease-ridden and filthy prisons in Russia.

Once you start reading Mountains Beyond Mountains, you will reach for your remote and hope it is available on screen.

Mountains Beyond Mountains is truly a story of a gifted man who is in love with the world and has set out to do all he can to not only change it, but cure it. I encourage you to read the book and listen to our podcast as Kidder takes us on a journey of the words and worlds of international public health that most can only imagine.

And of course, share your thoughts with us.

If you haven't heard our podcast yet, listen now! Christine Mitchell, director of ethics at Children's Hospital Boston and the associate director of clinical ethics at Harvard Medical School, might get you thinking about in the book in different way.

Consider this: is it really unethical to have a child as a means to something else - in this case, having Anna so her umbilical cord could be used for Kate's stem cell transplant - when it's been going on for centuries? Didn't families used to have children to help with the back-breaking work on the farm? Didn't royal families always have at least two children so they could have a "spare" if the heir died?

"The reasons we get here, when they're not accidental, are quite varied," Mitchell says in her podcast. "When you put it in perspective ... it doesn't seem nearly as peculiar just because it's the employment of a new technology. Having a child because it's possible to use the blood from the umbilical cord for [another child's] stem cell transplant is among the better reasons."

Mitchell provided us with such great insight we couldn't include it all in the podcast. Here is what she said about the role of medical ethicists, changes in the field, anticipating ethical trends and prebirth planning:

Q: What exactly does a medical ethicist do?

A: Christine Mitchell: I'm the ethicist at Children's Hospital Boston. I go on rounds with staff and see patients where there are questions about what they ought to do, especially if there's a disagreement. It might be a family who doesn't want their child to have a surgery that the staff really feels is important. I meet with the family, patient and clinical team, and if it's a formal consult, there are three or four other members of the ethics committee with me.

Q: Who makes up an ethics committee?

A: Ethics committees now in almost all hospitals are multidisciplinary; there are usually three or four physicians and an equal number of nurses, a psychologist or psychiatrist, a social worker, a couple community members and an in-house or community chaplain. There may even be a couple of chaplains from different religions if relevant to a case. Some committees also have attorneys or risk managers. But the main thing is the committee involves people from a variety of perspectives, not just healthcare.

Q: How has technology changed the ethical landscape?  

A: There's this little saying in ethics that "ought" implies "can" - ought meaning value decisions, or decisions about what people should do - and that is usually the herald for an ethics moral obligation. "Ought implies can" means you don't really have to worry about what you ought to do, unless you can do it. Well sometimes that gets twisted around. People think just because you can do it, you ought to do it. That has often been called the technological imperative; in other words, because we can do these things with technology, people assume that we ought to. Some of what ethics committees do is provide a little bit of a curb on that technological imperative and think more seriously about whether we ought to do the things we can do.

Q: Would you back a family's decision to have stem cell research or preimplantation genetic diagnosis?

A: It's an advantage to many families to have preimplantation genetic diagnosis. This procedure entails joining the egg and sperm outside of the womb, testing it for known genetic diseases, and then choosing an embryo that doesn't have that genetic problem. It means a child with a genetic disease that would otherwise be deadly, or lead to a very painful life of suffering can be avoided - and it's hard to say that's wrong, although there are some people who do. So people can exercise individual choice about whether they would use that technology. It doesn't seem right to impose a restriction that covers everyone since it's a value not everyone would share. Stem cell transplants are getting more difficult. If we know a child like Kate's life can be saved with a blood transfusion from the umbilical cord, and that's available, it would be hard to respect a family's desire not to have it. We probably would respect it, but that gets into much more difficult domain where we have to look at the details of the specific case.

Q: How do ethics committees keep up with the changing ethical landscape brought on by new technology? Do ethics committees ever get together and say, "This is what's coming up and here's how we're going to handle it."?

A: Most ethics committees have educational programs every few months. We have our genetics division tell us what screening and testing devices they're starting to use that might allow families to choose treatments, so we can have a better understanding of what the possibilities are. Trying to get background information is pretty normal for ethics committees. What we don't do is harden things into policies or protocols in very new areas. Especially as treatments are in creation and we don't know what the ethical issues are going to be. That takes time and experience to get a better grasp on the generalizations that can be made into guidelines or policies.

When it came time to prepare our book club discussion for My Sister's Keeper, we knew landing Jodi Picoult for an interview would be like trying to land Oprah.

It was true. As the bestselling author of 15 books and counting, Picoult is booked - until 2010!

However we also couldn't help but notice Picoult's enthusiastic appreciation for nurses. On page 61 of My Sister's Keeper in the voice of Sara Fitzgerald, Picoult writes:

"Thirty-six hours after Kate is officially diagnosed with APL [acute promyelocytic leukemia], Brian and I are given an opportunity to ask questions. ... The nurses, I have already learned, are the ones who give us the answers we're desperate for. Unlike the doctors, who fidget like they need to be somewhere else, the nurses patiently answer us as if we are the first set of parents to ever have this kind of meeting with them, instead of the thousandth."

This opinion comes from personal experience. When her middle son Jake was 5, he was diagnosed with bilateral cholesteatomas in his ears, which Picoult describes on her Web site as "benign tumors that will eventually burrow into your brain and kill you, if you don't manage to catch them."

"He had 10 surgeries in 3 years," she writes, "and he's tumor free now. Clearly, I wasn't facing the same urgent fears that the mom of a cancer patient faces ... but it's not hard to remember how trying those hospitalizations were."

So despite her busy schedule, Picoult wanted to let all of the nurses out there know how much, in her words, she "adores" them. We asked, "In what way were nurses a positive support to you during your son's hospital stay?" and she sent us this response via e-mail:

"Nurses were the humanity in the whole hospital experience; they were the ones who connected with my son on a very personal level, who knew how he liked to have his IV removed, and what scared him and didn't scare him about surgeries. I was surprised, at first, at what nurses DIDN'T do, e.g., hold the emesis basin or walk the child to the bathroom outside (no private bathrooms in this hospital); that was left to the parent. But my husband and I learned very quickly that if you wanted something done fast, you got to know the nurses; they are the heart that makes a hospital beat."

--Jodi Picoult

We'd like to thank her for her time, and urge you all to read My Sister's Keeper where Picoult graciously gives nurses the recognition they deserve.

I didn't have to hold the thought for too long. That Monday, Gail Guterl, the brains behind our book club here at ADVANCE, asked if I'd choose the November book. When I told her about the story I had heard, she said that would be great since November is, after all, National Home Health and Hospice Month. And when I got in touch with Dale Marie Clark, RN, executive director at Hospice Volunteers of the Waterville Area (to whom the book's proceeds benefit) and found out she shared a common bond with our book club members -- she's a registered nurse -- everything fell in place. Then, of course, I read the book, and couldn't have been more certain with my choice.

A great anecdote Clark told me, which unfortunately didn't make the podcast, concerned a phone call Lee Duff, a board member and volunteer at the association, received after the book was published. A man was struck by the story Russo wrote in which he profiled Duff and the difficulties Duff faced after his wife's health was declining due to Alzheimer's. After reading the story, the man decided the best thing for his wife was to put her in an assisted-living facility to get the care she needed.

Readers, what did you take away from reading these personal accounts?  

There are so many things I admire about Lt. Col. Deanna Germain : her humbleness, tenacity, compassion, just to name a few. Her journey to Iraq and the dedication with which she did her job under the worst circumstances are testaments to the human spirit and her role as a nurse. Some questions I have for Germain after reading the story:

1. Going into active duty, you were confident you would only serve 6 months because you were in a reserve unit. Then there was one delay, then two, then three. How did your feelings for the assignment and your work change throughout these uncertain times?
2. Your description of the dangerous convoy ride to the prison was so engaging. At one point, you said, "This was a moment in my life worth remembering." What are your memories of your trip and the importance of recalling it later?
3. At one point, you called Abu Ghraib home. Is this a testament to the power of resilience or just a way to cope?
4. Do you ever think about where your patients are now? If they’re living or dead? Patients like Bassem.
5. What got you through your time at Abu Ghraib and your tour of duty?

For other book club readers, how did you feel about the book?

Here are my thoughts:

The author's creative use of analogies...pg 124 ..."spin in circles like that crazy teacup ride at the amusement park" and insightful descriptions...Hospitals -"a storehouse of wounded strangers" pg 103

Her frustration with the healthcare insurance system...pg 216

Her strengthened intuition and power within...pg 179-180

Her positive attitude "your attitude is the only thing you control in your life.." pg 55 ---- and hope...pg 86-87

humor ..."beat themselves up and lose" ...pg 157....She has an amazing sense of humor!  Was she funny before "the incident"?

My questions:

• Is her initial healthcare team representative of the typical team of the average patient today who deals with the various individual personalities...Dr. Jerk, Dr. Neuro, etc.
• Why didn't the doctors ask her...what was different about the day you had your seizure? What did you drink / eat? What medications are you currently taking? What meds did you take on the day you had your seizure?

Lastly, I am in awe of her ability to remain positive and humorous through an extremely difficult "incident" which is essentially her new life and how she is still able to be a mother and a wife. I am more grateful because of reading about her experience...more aware of the importance of heels, toes, ...the little things everyone takes for granted.

What do you think?

To get things rolling, here are some questions about my book Don't Leave Me This Way. To discuss this book, scroll down and leave a comment.

• Nursing is achallenging job that requires consistent unfailing care and fulfilling more than one single need. What do you do for yourself to re-energize so that you can cope with the stress ofregularly responding to your patient's distress?
  
• How do you feel that often you're not only a caregiver, but an advisor as well to the patient and the patient's loved ones?
  
• Swapping roles from nurse to patient, ifyou were being treated in your hospital, would you be satisfied with the care?
  
• Do you ever find yourself 'labeling' a patient? For example, I had several labels attached to me duringmy long stay in the hospital--impulsive and impetuous, in denial, andstroke in 417?
  
• Are you happy that you chose nursing as a profession or do you feel disillusioned?

Q: I'm very intrigued to see your ESP, your prescience that you discussed in the book. You forsaw Daisy was misdiagnosed, you had a dream about a plane the night before 9/11, and you were sure your diagnosis was not what the doctors insisted. Was this ESP new post stroke or was it something you always had.

A: Julia Fox Garrison: Well, I believe we all have it; it's something that got fine tuned for me after my stroke. What it really is is listening to your inner voice, because that's your soul talking to you and it's the most honest voice you'll ever hear. I was able to trust it. Sometimes it can be scary. I remember Jim saying to me when I said they had made a mistake on Daisy's diagnosis ‘do you really just wish it so badly you believe it or do you feel it. And I felt it.  It's something we all have. It's just a matter of fine tuning and listening to it.

Q: The medical terminology and explanations in the book are very clear and concise. In fact, I believe at one point you were approached by a doctor after speaking before a group of physicians to compliment you on the accuracy and simplicity of your explanations of your medical condition. You were a software support manager before the stroke, what kind of research did you do in writing this book to get that accuracy?

A: I didn't do any research. The only research is what I had been through. That was my education. I asked a lot of questions. I was a real pain to the doctors because I never stopped asking until I completely understood it. I don't have a degree in medical science, but I feel like I do now because of what I have been through. What I've asked others in my talks - especially those who have a devastating injury - is do they remember everything and they say "yes." It's like a movie. You can see the room, the color of the tile, the smell. It's like visualization. I am actually using visualization to recover. Believe me I'm going to rollerblade some day.

Q: Your book began as a self-published, but because of its popularity, it ended up being in an auction and HarperCollins won the bid. Did you have to make a lot of changes from the self-published PS Julia: missing a piece of your mind can be puzzling to the HarperCollins book with the new title, Don't Leave Me This Way?

A: I had the ability to interview with the interested publishers and I wanted to find a publisher who would be sensitive to my story and keep it intact. HarperCollins did a fabulous job with that. I love that publisher; they have become my friends, like family. You can always edit and edit. I did have to make some changes, a few new chapters and an appendix at the back of patient tools.

Q: Many who have read your book wonder if Jim will ever write about the experience from his perspective?

A: I don't think Jim will ever write his perspective because he gets very emotional and doesn't like to relive the experience. He's extremely private too, so it would be uncomfortable to reveal his emotions o the public. Of course, he has me, the big mouth, so we counter-balance each other.

Q: Now, 11 years after your stroke, how is Rory doing?

A: Rory didn't start to show signs of distress until he was 7 and half when he had developed the verbal skills to express his feelings. He became extremely phobic of several things, which I did address in the book, such as all things medical, food, his parents dying. He actually had post-traumatic stress and I had to get him counseling for years. He's much better now and as happy as can be, a typical 13 year old.

One of my passions is reading and I'm delighted to announce we have organized an online book club, the ADVANCE Book Club for Nurses.

Here's how it will work. Every other month, we will choose a book from a long list of books suggested by you and other avid readers. Although it won't be a hard and fast rule, we will try to choose books available in paperback to reduce your cost. We'll publicize the title online and in print and you'll have 2 months to read the book, with the exception of the first book. (You only have a few weeks to read it.)

To start the online discussion, we will either interview the author or talk to the nurse who suggested the book. The interview will be in the form of a podcast. We also will pose some questions to get the discussion going.

Then you can weigh in on your views on this book through our blog as a platform for discussion. You can "talk" to other readers, pose questions to them and express your opinion about the book, or use the book's topic as a springboard for ancillary discussions.

Drum Roll

So, let's get started! Our first book is Don't Leave Me This Way: Or When I Get Back on My Feet You'll be Sorry by Julia Fox Garrison (HarperCollins, 344 pages, available in hardcover and paperback). In 1997 at age 37, this software support manager had a stroke, which obviously changed her life. Several years later, Garrison decided to write about her experiences and her recovery in a laugh-out-loud style.

Garrison discussed her book in a podcast available in our Book Club. She answered questions about why she chose humor as the tone of the book, why she depersonalized the names of her caregivers, what she learned from the experience, and even how the book got published and ended up on the bestseller list.

This skillfully crafted memoir, by a person who had never written a book, will keep you riveted. And I promise you will come away with a new understanding of being a patient and a caregiver.

Ready, Set, Go

So get the book, begin reading, make notes, and get set to belly laugh and share some insight and poignant moments with Julia Fox Garrison. (The ADVANCE Healthcare Shop is offering this book.)

Sept. 2 we'll read Reaching Past the Wire: A Nurse at Abu Ghraib by Deanna Germain, NP. The title pretty much tells it all. The book is riveting and recounts Germain's experiences at Abu Ghraib about the notorious abuse occurred but before it became public knowledge.

In commemoration of Home Health and Hospice Month in November, the book club will read A Healing Touch: True Stories of Life, Death and Hospice, a collection of profile pieces about people who have gone through hospice in central Maine written by notable Maine writers (one of the pieces is by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Richard Russo, who also edited the collection). The book's royalties support the Hospice Volunteers of Waterville Area, while the publisher is donating some of its profits from the book, as well. That book conversation begins Nov. 3.