Everything Is Possible

About the Book

Everything is Possible: A Nurse’s Memoir recounts the personal and professional life of a woman who is daughter, mother, nurse, wife, friend, educator, scholar and mentor through decades that span the second half of the twentieth century and reaches into the new millennium. In her own words, Sylvia Kleiman Fields shares her diverse experiences and places them in the context of the sweep of events that mark these decades. By combining the insights gleaned from a keen memory of her life and the perceptions of a health care professional steeped in the power of observation and diagnosis, the author tells a story that is both intimate and expansive. With courage and conviction her journey takes her beyond the intimate confines of the small New York apartment she sometimes shared with Holocaust survivors. She explores the halls of academia, the adventure of international conferences, the challenges of making and maintaining family life, the opportunities to pursue health care missions and the excitement of conducting research and interprofessional teaching. If you find yourself attracted to the accounts of the lives of determined and intelligent individuals or if you desire to learn more about the people who shape significant institutions in American life, then Everything Is Possible: A Nurse’s Memoir will speak to you through the voice of a woman of persistence, insight, and achievement.

About the Author

Sylvia Kleiman Fields, the daughter of European Jewish immigrants, grew up in a tiny Brooklyn apartment. In the 1950s, she followed a non-traditional career path in nursing. Later she taught both nurses and physicians and co-authored Guide to Patient Evaluation. She helped to create the Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy.