On the Lighter Side: Laughter & Lessons with Nurse-Author Robin Dainty
A registered nurse since 1982, and a CEN since 1995, Robin Dainty, BSN, RN, CEN, worked in hospitals and emergency rooms in Miami and Northern California, and as a travel nurse across the Western U.S.
Through all the years and all the shifts, she jotted down notes about memorable happenings on the job—from the hilarious to the deeply poignant—and kept them in a file thinking they might make a good book someday. Upon retirement, she decided it was time to pay tribute to nurses and help the public understand what being a nurse is really like, and penned her first-person memoir.
BCEN recently interviewed Robin about Laughter & Lessons: Healthcare Stories from a Nurse—which skyrocketed to the top of the Amazon Bestseller List for new releases just weeks after its debut.
What inspired you to write down stories and anecdotes from work?
Early in my medical career, I realized that most people had no idea what nurses do at work. So, I decided to jot down snippets of hysterical or profound events which I encountered frequently, and I stuck those notes in a file called “The Lighter Side” for later use.
Every time something funny or significant happened at work, I would declare out loud, “Well that event just made my book!” That day, I would go home and immediately jot down what had taken place.
What’s it like to write a book?
The file that I had created was a treasure trove of stories and memories. At the end of 2021, with the file now overflowing, I decided to write a book.
I started typing my story in January and completed the medical memoir in August. The stories flowed out of me like water streams out of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in April. It was an amazing experience to relive my career in print, and the process was cathartic.
How were you able to get a publisher, and what was it like to launch a book?
Finding a publisher was an arduous task. After nine months of sending query letters to many publishers without a response, I decided to self-publish with Amazon.
Within the first month of launching my book, Laughter and Lessons: Healthcare Stories from a Nurse was named #1 on the Amazon Bestseller List for new releases. (Proud nurse here.😊)
Why was being a Certified Emergency Nurse (CEN) important to you and your practice?
Early in my career, I obtained a certification in med-surg nursing. When I transferred to the ER in 1995, I knew I wanted to test for my Certified Emergency Nurse (CEN) as well. Immediately after I completed two years in the ER, I took the CEN exam and passed.
Getting my CEN credential showed my commitment to keep abreast of the best practices and advances in emergency medicine. It also helped me maintain competencies, thereby guiding me to deliver the safest and highest quality of care to every patient.
What would you like to say to the community of nurses certified through BCEN?
I could write a book to answer that question. Oh, I did! LOL!
My 40-year nursing career is filled with seemingly endless tales that continue to overtake my thoughts at various times, including in my sleep, while I run errands, and while I chat with friends. Some of these memories can bring me to tears at the drop of a hat. Other stories make me feel like a superhero. Do I have PTSD? Most nurses probably do.
I’m convinced that being a certified ER nurse was the reason I arrived on this planet. And thankfully, I am not alone, for many others have had the same destiny.
A big motivation for me to write this book was to educate others about what nurses really do. I wanted everyone to know how important experienced (certified) emergency room nurses are to any society as a whole. I firmly believe that without nurses, humanity would have a very difficult time surviving.
And so, if a funny memoir about our profession is what you seek as a fellow nurse, my book just might be for you!
Robin Dainty’s book, Laughter and Lessons: Healthcare Stories from a Nurse, is available on Amazon.com or her “Laughter and Lessons” Etsy page. You can also read more about Robin at robindainty.com.
