Sacred journeys of nurse healers

This article reports on a hermeneutic phenomenological investigation of the transformational and extraordinary experiences, or sacred journeys, of 11 nurse healers. The study was guided by Watson’s conceptual model. An overarching theme, "walking two worlds," was identified, along with five essential themes: belonging and connecting, opening to spirit, summoning, wounding and healing journey, and living as a healer. The importance of these phenomenologically uncovered holistic understandings to the teaching, practice, administration, knowledge development, and theoretical evolvement of nursing is argued.