Leave No Nurse Behind: Nurses Working with Disabilities

Donna Carol Maheady
iUniverse (2006)
ISBN 0595396496
Reviewed by AJ Cooper for Reader Views (9/06)

The main focus of “Leave No Nurse Behind: Nurses Working with Disabilities” is how nurses with disabilities cope and guidelines for ensuring a long career in the nursing field through direct patient care, management positions, and consulting among other areas.

It is very clear throughout the book that a nurse with a disability can function very well in a number of different settings. This is a clear guide on how nurses function on a daily basis and how a nurse can preserve his or her current position and the actions as well as the form letters, that may be needed to ensure the safety of their jobs.

Late in life my father became disabled and was restricted to a wheelchair. Fortunately for him, he was able to retire. I watched the pain and suffering both of my parents endured from the stigma of a wheelchair and the fact he was missing a leg. Many places indicated wheelchair accessibility, but it was located on the most inconvenient part of the building and, in many instances, in dangerous locations for my parents to try to get in and out of the car. I helped in their struggle and in many cases became infuriated with hospitals and doctors offices with the poor access. Things did slowly change, but I can still remember being seated in a restaurant and the staff had no idea what to do with someone in a wheelchair and they basically abandoned us in a poor spot in their establishment.  Needless to say we never returned.

This book could have meaning for everyone that reads it. We all face hardships in our lives and this book offers some really sound advice that I know I welcome. The solutions and advice offered in this book are clear and concise. By other nurses telling their stories and providing contacts, it gives hope to those who may not have any and shows everyone that if you work hard enough and have the will you can succeed at anything you set your mind to. Every medical school could benefit from using this book as required reading to better prepare future providers understanding of their abilities and those around them as well as providing acceptance of people with disabilities and take the stigma away that someone who is disabled can function and perform in a medical environment.  I really enjoyed the stories and the information and the Workable Wisdom at the end of each chapter in “Leave No Nurse Behind: Nurses Working with Disabilities.”

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