Contending with nurse (4)
I believe the answer is:
tend
'nurse' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
'contending with' is the wordplay.
'with' indicates a hidden word.
'TEND' is hidden within 'contending'.
(Other definitions for tend that I've seen before include "Be predisposed, or care for" , "See to" , "Incline, lean" , "Look after, take care of" , "Incline - mind" .)