Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammatory disorder severely impacting physical and psychosocial well-being. Alongside pharmacological treatments, nonpharmacological interventions are increasingly sought. This randomized controlled trial aimed to evaluate the efficacy of a music listening intervention on symptom management and quality of life in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. The study included 88 patients at a university hospital. The intervention group listened to standardized Turkish music (maqams) twice daily for 30 days. Data were collected at baseline, day 15, and day 30 using the EuroQol 5-dimensional Quality of Life Scale and Patient Symptom Thermometer. By day 30, the intervention group demonstrated significantly higher overall quality of life (EuroQol 5-dimensional Index and Visual Analog Scale; P < .05) compared with controls. Significant improvements were also observed in pain intensity, fatigue, physical function, depression (all P < .001), and general health status (P = .004). Therapeutic music listening can be an effective, noninvasive, and cost-efficient holistic nursing intervention. Integrating this sustainable strategy into rheumatoid arthritis care yields rapid, significant clinical improvements in multidimensional symptom management and overall quality of life.
Burnout of nurses is a global occupational hazard characterized by emotional exhaustion, cynicism, and reduced care quality. Often framed as a nurse resilience issue, other evidence suggests organizational and systemic contributors such as workload, staffing shortages, and toxic leadership. This article introduces a holistic, tarot-informed framework for nurse self-reflection based on the Rider-Waite process organized around the Celtic Cross card-position structure. This framework uses card positions and symbolism as prompts to explore psychological, social, professional, and structural influences that inform nurses' experiences of burnout, rather than using tarot for prediction or divination. The 10-card position spread supports meaning-making, mindfulness, and professional identity to explore nurses' work experiences; tarot cards can be added for deeper symbolic meaning. This interconnected framework provides a pathway to nurse resilience and holistic insight. Individual reflection alone is insufficient; sustainable change also requires leadership accountability and organizational commitment to healthy work environments. Nursing is based on human caring, which also includes caring for ourselves.
