The art of loving and the therapeutic relationship

Contemporary developments in nursing and health-care, which emphasise evidence-based and outcome-oriented practice often fail to recognise the centrality of the caring relationship in everyday practice. This paper aims to examine the therapeutic role of the nurse within the context of an increasingly technicalized and bureaucratic healthcare system. Focusing on the importance of love and its healing potential, we intend to raise awareness of some difficult and often polemic arguments pertaining to the concept of clinical caritas. We return to the fundamental question: why do people enter nursing? In doing so we explore the concept of caring utilising theoretical and experiential examples to illustrate ways in which healthcare systems can both drain and nurture the practitioners' capacity to care. A framework for developing the art of loving within nursing care is presented, which emphasises the balance between discipline, concentration, patience, concern and activity. We conclude by outlining the boundaries in which genuine love may be expressed within the parameters of a professional role.