Abstract
Nursing in radiotherapy sections is strongly focused on the nursing assignment of giving the prescribed «solicitous and safe radiology treatment». Nursing acts related to this area are carefully documented in case reports, whereas ‘independent’ nursing acts and the care aspect of nursing are often absent from the documentation. The question is whether the paucity of documentation indicates a lack of independent nursing and care, or whether it merely takes place as a matter of course. To answer this question postcards and letters written by patients was analysed and interpreted.
The analysis and interpretation show that a large degree of independence and care is being displayed. Nurses engage in professional relationships with patients and their families and are capable of transforming radiotherapy sessions into positive experiences. This is connected to the nurse's manner which was described in subcategories such as «smiling» and «acknowledging the other as a person» and related to patients' experience of the nurse as being «highly competent».