Crying for Comfort

CSNM Conference, Ledbury 2004

Tim James, Paediatric Staff Nurse, Paediatric Intensive Care Unit, Bristol Royal Hospital for Children

In March I attended the Christian Student Nurses and Midwives (CSNM) conference, which was held at Dyke House, Ledbury in Herefordshire. The Conference was shared between students and qualified practitioners which also included Allied Professionals from Christian Therapists Network (CTN) & Therapy Students Christian Fellowship (TSCF). The conference was in conjunction with the C.U movement named Universities, Colleges Christian Fellowship (UCCF). The theme of the weekend away was looking at ‘suffering’ and it’s application to Christians as health professionals.

The weekend consisted of lots of fun, games, worship, fellowship, seminars, talks, getting to know other health professionals and plenty of food! Our speaker for the weekend was Hugh Thomson, a surgeon and church leader of City Evangelical church in Birmingham. Hugh’s teaching came from the book of Job looking at what suffering is, how we can help those who suffer and consider where God is in suffering. The talks were enlightening, helpful and very practical.

I learnt so much from the
weekends teaching and I would
need all the room of this
magazine to share it with you!

One thing which really struck me from Hugh’s teaching was that God is always with us during the midst of suffering. The Lord God our Heavenly Father feels and shares the suffering of His children. That was a real comfort to me and also helped me gain insight into the reasons behind suffering in this world.

Some of the seminars on offer this year at conference were: Christian medical ethics, overseas mission as the healthcare professional, working in a low-morale environment, listening, and preparing for new disability regulations in the church. All the seminars were enjoyed and well attended. I went along to the Ethics seminar looking at some case studies, which had occurred recently within the UK. It was really interesting because we were looking at these case studies from the Christian healthcare perspective. It gave the ethical decisions we were discussing a different slant from the world perspective. The conference is a great event to attend if you want to pick up information about Christian Healthcare missions and work in the UK and overseas. There is also literature about healthcare issues and ethics from the Christian perspective. The conference holds a large bookstall with fantastic books including apologetics, theology, healthcare, mission, and biographies. Some of the books are also heavily discounted too! The best thing about the conference this year was that it was health professionals from a variety of fields in healthcare. We came together as part of God’s church and those present included not just nurses but Occupational Therapists, Dieticians, Physiotherapists and Speech Therapists too. As we worshipped God and had fellowship together, it was such an encouragement because we were firstly together as God’s children, secondly brothers and sisters in Christ and thirdly as health professionals who understood one another’s profession. So often I find professional issues and events of a working day difficult to share with family and friends because they don’t understand the ‘ups’ and ‘downs’ of healthcare. But here at the conference there were brothers and sisters who I could talk to not just about Jesus but also about professional issues. I made new friends who I keep in touch with and it means we are able to encourage one another in our walks with Jesus and within the workplace.

I highly recommend the conference and next year another joint conference is being planned for 4th-6th March 2005 at Quinta near Oswestry. CNM members are invited to join with the Christian Therapist's Network, Therapist Student Christian location has moved to create space for more people to attend. Please note this date and further details will be available shortly.

If you would like to hear those talks and the teaching on suffering, they can be purchased in audio-cassette format for a small fee from UCCF via http://www.uccf.org.uk/resources/index.php?resourcetype=17