Category: Empowered Nurses

I recently finished an 8-week class on mindfulness-based stress reduction.  I chose to take the class because my sister had attended it and came out like a different person.  She is much more relaxed and focused in her life. The purpose of mindfulness based stress reduction is to be mindful in everything that we do.  Including eating!  There were formal […]

I thought I’d go “old school and nostalgic” to let you read about what it was like when I first became a nurse in 1980s.  Nursing is still the largest group of health care professionals. One of the biggest changes from yesterday to today is what we wear. I recall being so excited to get my white cap and pin […]

I’ve always known that your gut plays a huge role in helping you be successful as a nurse. Take the case of a nurse who was working with a patient who had a cervical spine fusion the previous day.  He complained of having a raspy voice and trouble swallowing.  His vital signs were all normal.  The nurse knew in her […]

In a recent study conducted by United Kingdom’s National Health Service showed that 300 nurses committed suicide in their country from 2011 to 2017.  In 2014, one nurse committed suicide each week.  That nurses would take their own lives is appalling and sad.  Nursing is so stressful.  Remember the nurse in England who gave out confidential information to a radio […]

Julie Griffin, R.N., once worked as a cardiovascular ICU nurse (CVICU) at Westside Regional Medical Center near Miami in Plantation, Florida owned by Hospital Corporation of America (HCA). On August 10, 2018, Ms. Griffin filed a lawsuit claiming that she was retaliated against and fired for making whistleblower complaints.  She had concerns that were brought to the attention of management […]

Can you believe that we recently celebrated the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11 moon landing?  And Neil Armstrong was the first to walk where no man had ever gone before.  Who can forget his historic voice from a quarter-million miles away: “That’s one small for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind!” However, I was saddened to hear that his […]

Recently in Dallas, Jonathan Moore was involved in a crash killing a former councilwoman and her daughter.  The police were able to obtain a breathalyzer which showed a blood alcohol level of 0.00.  However, Moore failed 6 of 6 field sobriety tests and did not have normal use of his mental and physical faculties.  The Police believe that the man […]

Guest blog by Sandra Risoldi MSN Ed., DNP, RN, CLNC Some say nursing violence is a part of the job, while others refuse to believe being punched, spit-on, kicked, or verbally assaulted with insults is normal.  The subtle increase in violence is affecting not only the morale of nurses and other healthcare workers but also their mental health and safety.  […]

I am deeply concerned about the status of our health care system.  Massive nonprofit hospital systems pay no taxes as they have tax exempt status and they put the profits back into the system to continue their growth. Health care was originally designed to provide medical care to citizens in our community.  Churches and counties then owned the hospital to […]

In 2018, Tina Suckow, LPN, a nurse for over 30 years, had been working at a mental health hospital in Iowa for the four previous years.  One day, patient became violent and she was brutally assaulted.  She was severely injured and required multiple surgeries.  After her FMLA and accrued medical leave had been exhausted, the facility fired her.  What a […]