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News Update

REPORT O N THE W O R K S H O P 'CREATING A SACRED SPACE'

In the northern Lake District, lying in a valley, stands Redmire Farm. A group of nurses, with one common following (they are all Therapeutic Touch practi- tioners), had gathered to learn about 'Creating Sacred Space'.

Redmire Farm is idyllic. On an autumn day the mountain Blencathra was ablaze with bronze bracken, patches of purple heather and the emerald green of the grass. A small brook meanders through the valley and an ancient single slab of stone forms a bridge. The bog grass with the spiked fringed top dances in the breeze. The air is pure, clean and fresh and feels so good. A wood lies a short distance from the farmhouse, where a buzzard nests in a tall Scotch pine. Oak leaves and silver birch bark glow orange and silver in the sunlight. The senses are truly stunned by such amazingly beauti- ful surroundings.

Entering the farmhouse, the enchant- ment remains. Great care has been taken to create a restful, safe haven. Sacred Indian music fills the peaceful air as the group meditates. The day begins.

Jean Sayre-Adams of the Didsbury Trust, together with Professor Steve Wright, had organized this workshop. Together we would look at a broader pic- ture of caring; at ways of enriching the spiritual needs of patients and staff through creating a sacred place. A place 'where healing and nurturing are cher- ished' (Sayre-Adams). First, we had to start with ourselves, in a gentle and kind way. The environment within and with- out is blessed to the tired, stressed or weary. In such a place the heart can open and grow.

Steven and Jean are acutely aware that many of the problems acknowledged in the health-care setting are linked to a feeling that the caring system has become systematic, ordered, clinical, cold and, for some, indifferent. Today we pon- dered on how to bring the heart back into nursing.

As the sun moved in the heavens, the group made music. Music, rhythm and

movement were a rich part of the day's events. The awareness of the senses expanded, as time passed. The day was one of sharing, giving, receiving, partak- ing in rituals, building and making a sacred space; a sacred space that had a special place in the heart of each one there.

If you are tired, weary, lacking in energy and drained of creativity, then I would recommend the 'Creating Sacred Space' workshop. It has something very special to offer; that may profoundly change your life. This is perhaps summed up by Beckett who describes joy as:

. . . not a constant condition. Most people manage a settled cheerfulness, but this, however admirable, has noth- ing to do with joy, which flashes sud- denly upon our darkness . . . joy not merely illuminates our interior land- scape but transforms it. The world becomes different, marvellous and unique.

REFERENCES

Beckett W 1995 Meditation on Joy. Dorling Kindersley, London

The Sacred Space project is run by Professor Steve Wright, Director, The European Nursing Development Unit and Jean Sayre-Adams, Director, Didsbury Trust. They can be contacted at the following addresses: The European Nursing Development Agency, Redmire Farm, Mungrisdale, Cumbria C A l l 0TB, UK. Tel: 017687 79000. Didsbury Trust, Sherborne Cottage, Litton, Nr Bath, Avon BA3 4PS, UK. Tel: 01761 241640.

Ann Mills, Senior Nurse, Research Auditor,

Ritchie Russell House, Churchill Hospital,

Oxford, UK

SPIRITS U N D E R S C R U T I N Y

The Wellcome Trust has awarded Professor Edward Ernst, Chair of Complementary Medicine at Exeter University, and Neil Abbot s 000 to conduct a research trial to evaluate spiri- tual healing. The award comes from the

Complementary Therapies in Nursing & Midwifery (1997) 3, 146-147 �9 1997 Pearson Professional Ltd

Sir Henry Wellcome Commemorative Award Programme which recognizes 'innovative, speculative, adventurous and novel' research proposals.

H E A L T H W O R L D O N L I N E L A U N C H E S C Y B R A R I A N SERVICE

Los Angeles - HealthWorld Online announces the launch of the Cybrarian Service on 6 June 1997 that provides, for the first time, medical librarian services on the Internet. The Cybrarian Service (http://www.healthy.net/cybrarian) is designed to assist consumers, researchers and health professionals worldwide in sorting through the explosion of health and medical information on the Internet by customizing search results to meet specific information needs.

HealthWorld Online (http://www. healthy.net), the leading Internet Health Network dedicated to consumer health empowerment and Self-Managed Care, offers health information, products and services for a wellness-based lifestyle. Their signature global health village pro- vides resources on natural health care, nutrition, fitness, mind/body health and alternative medicine as well as many innovative services such as the Global Health Calendar, daily health newswire and free MEDLINE search.

B R E A K T H R O U G H IN C O M P L E M E N T A R Y HEALTH E D U C A T I O N

For the first time, a course in comple- mentary health care which addresses issues of mind and spirit has been endorsed by the English National Board for Nursing, the statutory body which oversees the quality of professional nurs- ing education in England. It has been developed by The Letchworth Centre for Homoeopathy and Complementary Medicine and validated by Thames Valley University. Classes begin in the autumn alongside the Letchworth Centre's other courses: the ENB A49 Complementary Medicine; a Higher Education Diploma in Complementary Medicine and Complementary Approaches to Palliative Care and Stress Awareness and Management.