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Poetry collection designed to offer words of encouragement to nurses

Actor Emilia Clarke praises book, to be given to new nurses and midwives in Scotland
Actor Emilia Clarke endorses collection of poems for newly qualified nurses and midwives

Game of Thrones actor and brain injury charity founder Emilia Clarke praises book, which will be given as a gift to newly qualified nurses and midwives in Scotland

Actor Emilia Clarke endorses collection of poems for newly qualified nurses and midwives
Actor Emilia Clarke Picture: Alamy

Game of Thrones star Emilia Clarke, an ambassador for the RCN, has endorsed a poetry book to be given as a gift to 3,000 newly qualified nurses and midwives.

To Mind Your Life: Poems for Nurses and Midwives is a pocket-size collection of poems intended to encourage and console front-line clinicians. It will be given by the Scottish Poetry Library (SPL) to nursing and midwifery graduates in Scotland over the next two years.

Poems that speak of kindness, hope… and exhaustion

The book, which features poems that deal with themes including kindness, hope and exhaustion, has been produced by the SPL, along with the Queen’s Nursing Institute Scotland (QNIS), the Royal College of Midwives and the Medical and Dental Defence Union Scotland.

QNIS chief executive and nurse director Clare Cable said the poetry speaks to the complexity and alchemy at the heart of nursing and midwifery.

‘The collection does not shy away from the challenges faced, offering a range of perspectives, expressing the pain and frustration in ways that make us feel less alone,’ she said.

‘Showing nurses and midwives the love they deserve’

Ms Clarke, who founded a brain injury recovery charity after having had two brain aneurysms, said: ‘It is vital we show nurses and midwives the love and appreciation they deserve, and I couldn’t think of a more beautiful offering than this collection to remind them why they are integral to our lives.’

The book is part of a ‘pocket poetry’ series that includes collections for new doctors and teachers. It is available to buy for £6.99 from the SPL shop.

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