First off, here’s some (perhaps) startling news: the work you’ll find in our Art of Nursing department might not be by a nurse or even about nursing, although of course it often is. It will somehow pertain to health or health care, and it will—we heartily believe—be worth the reader’s while. So, whether you’re a nurse or not, if you’re thinking about sending us a poem or visual art, why not give it a whirl? (We’ll also consider very short fiction—950 words or less.) As long as your work makes a connection to health or health care, is previously unpublished, and is well made, we’ll consider it happily. […]

There was the guy who stepped on a rusty nail and requested “a technical shot,” the girl who complained, “I’m hurting in my semi privates,” and the patient who boasted, “I’m so crazy I’m tripolar.”

While there’s a lot of “nurse humor” out there, much of it fairly outrageous or disgusting—and very necessary, as a way of letting off steam—we get the feeling from Terry Foster‘s popularity that his jokes, anecdotes, and delivery may actually be a few cuts above. Christine Moffa, AJN‘s clinical editor, concurs: “I’ve seen him perform . . . . He’s very funny. Tears-streaming-down funny.” Foster’s also been through some rough times, including a brain tumor and the death of his young wife.

Has anything even remotely funny (that you can share without breaking patient confidentiality!) happened to you lately on the job? How important is a good sense of humor in the nursing profession?