Nurses who run with the wolves: the power and caring dialectic revisited.

The dialectic of power and caring is illustrated through examples of nurses' experiences reported in a recent study of public health nursing. Examples of caring at each level of the dialectic are provided and implications for nurses and their practice discussed. Nurses whose practice was typically one of empowered caring "ran with the wolves," that is, they demonstrated a connection with their nursing legacy that gave them strength and creativity to imagine transformative possibilities.