On Saturday, April 11th, PSONS members gathered at the Kaiser Renton facility for a half-day retreat titled “Healing in Creative Community.” Designed as a “sacred pause” for oncology and oncology-adjacent nurses, the morning focused on trading clinical tasks for intentional reflection through art, storytelling, and peer connection.
Led by facilitators from Introspective Spaces, the retreat provided a dedicated sanctuary to address the heavy weight of moral distress and burnout. Following a lecture on moral distress in , participants engaged in expressive writing and mixed-media collage to process the unspoken stories we carry in our daily practice.
The Impact of a “Sacred Pause”
Initial findings from our participant surveys underscore the vital importance of these gatherings. Participants reported feeling better equipped with concrete coping strategies and, most importantly, felt a significantly strengthened sense of belonging within our local nursing community.
The Heart of the Experience
The qualitative feedback captured the true impact of the gathering space. The most frequent takeaway was a simple but powerful realization: “I am not alone.” Nurses shared that the retreat provided “a reminder that distress is not weakness” and many noted that the time spent together “gave me my ‘why’ back.”
As we look forward to future programming, we are reminded that our well-being is not a luxury—it is a necessity for a sustainable nursing practice. Thank you to everyone who joined us in this restorative space.
Get Involved
We want our chapter events to continue reflecting the needs and hearts of our members. If you have ideas or feedback for future chapter endeavors, please reach out to our Membership Chair, Lyndsey Brooke, at membership@psons.org. We would love to hear from you!