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Journal of Family Nursing
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Letter

Therapeutic Letters in Nursing

Examining the Character and Influence of the Written Word in Clinical Work With Families Experiencing Illness

Nancy J. Moules, RN, PhD

University of Calgary, njmoules{at}ucalgary.ca

This article summarizes the first research to be completed on the Family Systems Nursing intervention of therapeutic letters. In the Family Nursing Unit (FNU) at the University of Calgary, therapeutic letters have been used for more than 22 years in work with families experiencing illness and suffering. Using Gadamerian philosophical hermeneutic inquiry, the research explores 11 therapeutic letters sent and received in the work with three families (four participants) seen in the FNU. Textual interpretation of the 11 letters was complemented by research interviews with the families and nurses who wrote the letters as well as in-session, presession, and postsession transcriptions. Interpretations suggest that letters have an influence related to the tone of the individuals and the relationship created; the balancing of questions, commendations, and artful writing; memory and remembrance; measures and markers of change; and the obligation of meeting people experiencing illness at the point of their suffering.

Key Words: Family Systems Nursing • family intervention • therapeutic letters • hermeneutic inquiry • qualitative research

This version was published on February 1, 2009

Journal of Family Nursing, Vol. 15, No. 1, 31-49 (2009)
DOI: 10.1177/1074840709331639
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This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Journal of Family NursingHome page
D. Epston
The Legacy of Letter Writing as a Clinical Practice: Introduction to the Special Issue on Therapeutic Letters
Journal of Family Nursing, February 1, 2009; 15(1): 3 - 5.
[PDF]

Home page
 Journal of Family NursingHome page
N. J. Moules
The Past and Future of Therapeutic Letters: Family Suffering and Healing Words
Journal of Family Nursing, February 1, 2009; 15(1): 102 - 111.
[Abstract] [PDF]