A LETTER TO YOU

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'Tis the cold and flu season once again and with the rapid spread of H1N1 virus, healthcare professionals across the country are doing their part to combat it.

Doug Childers takes a look at what local clinics and hospitals are doing to prevent the virus from spreading.

Those chilly winds are also ushering in another holiday season to the delight of children everywhere. But how do you make the holiday cheerful for children in hospitals?

Joan Tupponce examines how hospital staff and volunteers make this time of year extra special for its youngest patients. The festive outpouring often means just as much to the families as it does to the patients.

Turning our attention to a different kind of festive atmosphere, Ellen Feller, an RN with Asera Care Hospice, shows us the pageantry of the Middle Ages. Our stress-relief feature showcases her involvement with the Society for Creative Anachronism, a group dedicated to accurately depicting medieval lifestyle while reinforcing values like service and performing good deeds.

Our profile piece comes to us from Robin Blanchard, CRNA, MSNA, who serves as a patient's "eyes and ears" during surgery. As a nurse anesthetist, she describes the "sacred trust" her profession holds to ensure a patient's health and comfort during surgery.

This issue wouldn't be complete without a delicious recipe for holiday cookies. How can you go wrong when chocolate accounts for two of the ingredients?

We are excited about ringing in a new year of Nursing in Virginia, but we need your help. Please continue to send us your stress relief activities, photos and story ideas.

We wish you all a safe, happy and healthy holiday season!