Becoming a long-time TV medical contributor as a nurse wasn’t easy. In fact, I learned a lot of hard lessons along the way that I’m so eager to share and wish someone had told me. With the growing number of news stories about nurses recently, it appears that more and more negative stories are emerging. As the largest segment of the healthcare workforce and with the power of social media, nurses have the power to educate, empower, do damage control, and change the narrative. With sound bites and ...
Feb 28, 2023•44 min•Season 1Ep. 103
Have you ever gone to work and your patient assignment was straight bananas so you had every intention of walking up to the charge nurse to give them a piece of your mind? In this episode Nurse Alice addresses Beth's question by first advising her that you can't just tell the charge nurse that they suck but instead provides her some insight into the charge nurse role and provides tips for what nurses should do when their assignment seems overwhelming.
Feb 14, 2023•35 min•Season 2Ep. 104
When inclement weather and natural disasters occur, hospitals and other healthcare facilities are expected to remain operating. And we all know without nurses, hospitals would not be able to keep their doors open. So what do you as a nurse do during inclement weather? When is it safe and not safe to travel to/from work? And how does it impact your schedule? In this episode Nurse Alice responds to a caller and explains inclement weather, where that policy should be, and some fundamental things yo...
Jan 31, 2023•32 min•Season 1Ep. 102
In this episode Nurse Alice shares her advice on why working as a CNA before nursing school (or your first nursing job) can be to your advantage. Not only will it look great on your application but it will prime and prepare you for what to expect in clinical and give you tons of insight into the profession you'll be joining. Read the article: 3 Reasons To Become a CNA Before Nurse...
Jan 23, 2023•35 min•Season 1Ep. 101
Have you ever been asked to pick up an extra shift at work? And even though many of us already have a set schedule - we still pick up, and for a variety of reasons. But what happens when the requests are happening more often and you really don't want to work but feel bad about saying no? Do you feel guilty or pressured to still say yes? And if you do pick up the shift, do you negotiate the deal to make it sweeter for you? In this episode Nurse Alice explains why you may feel bad about saying no ...
Jan 16, 2023•30 min•Season 1Ep. 100
Imagine working a long and hard shift with no breaks or lunch relief and just when it's report time you learn that there's no nurse coming to relieve you. In this episode Nurse Alice shares a recent personal experience of having to stay over past the end of her shift until someone could take her patients. Did she have to stay? If she didn't, would that have been patient abandonment? Tune in to learn more about what constitutes patient abandonment and what options you may have if ever in this sit...
Jan 10, 2023•25 min•Season 1Ep. 99
Imagine being an experienced nurse and being comfortable in a particular specialty and then one day making a decision to pivot into a different one. It can be scary and exciting at the same time because you're not a new nurse but you are new to a specialty. How can you best prepare for the transition? In this episode Nurse Alice answers a caller's question by offering tips on how she can successfully transition from working in telemetry to ICU. Nurse Alice provides insights and shares observatio...
Dec 13, 2022•33 min•Season 1Ep. 98
At one point in time, almost every nurse has toyed with the idea of climbing the traditional nursing career ladder of one-day becoming a charge nurse, unit manager, or nurse director - even if we didn't fully pursue it. Many don't for a variety of reasons but for those that do, the truth is many will try but only a few are chosen. So what would you do if you were trying to advance but were passed up for job promotions in your unit? Would you leave? In this episode Nurse Alice answers a caller's ...
Dec 06, 2022•31 min•Season 1Ep. 97
As nurses our job is to take care of other people but what happens when we're the ones that don't feel well? Or perhaps your child, parent, or significant other is sick - who takes care of them when you're supposed to be at work? For many of us this is infrequent and episodic so we're able to manage short-term issues but what if the condition is chronic or becoming more frequent in nature and you're having to call out sick from work more often? Is there anything you can do to protect your job? I...
Nov 29, 2022•33 min•Season 1Ep. 96
Have you ever felt nervous, sick, tired, or cried on your way to work? Whether a new nurse or a seasoned professional, you may be trying to cope with anxious feelings and thoughts before (or after) your shift. Many nurses struggle with fears around rejection, inadequacy, making mistakes, and job dissatisfaction, which can manifest into physical symptoms. In this episode Nurse Alice responds to a caller's question as to why his wife cries on her way to work every night as she leaves for her new n...
Nov 22, 2022•33 min•Season 1Ep. 95
Every patient is your patient when it comes to answering call lights. And while the call light system is needed to help us care for patients, it can sometimes feel like it's being overused or not used properly and disrupt us while we're in the middle of patient care... and that's frustrating. So where's the call light for the nurse when this happens? In this episode Nurse Alice talks about how the call light system was intended to use, the different types of call light devices, and provides tips...
Nov 15, 2022•25 min•Season 1Ep. 94
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the podcast guest and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of nurse.org Kelsay Irby is the ER Charge Nurse who made national headlines for calling 911 desperate for help with unsafe staffing at St. Michael Medical Center. Here’s her first-hand story of what really happened on the night of October 8, 2022. By now you've likely heard of the ER charge nurse who called 911 at St. Michael Medical Center in Washingt...
Nov 08, 2022•28 min•Season 1Ep. 92
In the most proverbial way, nurses are always fighting for our patients but recently some nurses did literally just that. Recently a man was arrested for assaulting infants at Odessa Regional Medical Hospital in Texas. Fortunately, the nurses there were able to separate the babies from the aggressor’s choking death grip. Selfless yes, but dangerous to themselves? Yes! Most ERs staff are required to have training for the management of aggressive patients but shouldn’t all nurses? Is calling a cod...
Nov 07, 2022•40 min•Season 1Ep. 93
What do you do when the emergency is in the emergency room? A Charge Nurse in the ER of St. Michael Medical Center in Washington called 911 when she determined she and her team were unsafely staffed for the over 45 patients in their rooms and waiting areas. It was her plea for help. Many applauded her but many worried for her job. In this episode Nurse Alice talks about what it's like working in the ER AND being short-staffed, what is ESI and EMTALA, what The Whistle Blower Act is, and how we ca...
Oct 23, 2022•25 min•Season 1Ep. 91
Have you ever felt guilty about calling in sick to work? So much so that you went to work anyways when you didn’t feel well, or perhaps you procrastinated calling in until the very last minute? Now ask yourself why? In this episode Nurse Alice shares a recent experience about feeling guilty for calling in sick to a new assignment and how it made her feel. But more importantly, she shares how even seasoned nurses can fall victim to “sick call guilt.” She explains what it is and why we have it, bu...
Oct 18, 2022•32 min•Season 1Ep. 90
Did you know that Sept 11-17th was Nephrology Nurses Week? In appreciation of all our nephrology nurses, Nurse Alice speaks with ANNA president-elect Jennifer Payton to discuss nephrology nursing as a specialty, what it takes to become a nephrology nurse, and different career opportunities for nephrology nurses.
Oct 06, 2022•20 min•Season 1Ep. 89
A recent decision by the NC Supreme Court overturning a 1932 precedent that once protected nurses from liability now has many nurses worried that they can be sued for following doctor's orders as several news outlets have reported. If following doctors' orders is part of everyday practice how concerned should nurses be? In this episode Nurse Alice discusses the court case that prompted the NC Supreme Court to overturn a 1932 precedent; explains the precedent that was overturned; gives a brief hi...
Sep 12, 2022•44 min•Season 2Ep. 88
Getting through nursing school and passing the NCLEX is already hard on its own. Now imagine doing it with a disability and experiencing discrimination every step of the way from nursing faculty, clinical sites, and potential employers. More than 1 billion people in the world openly have disabilities, and still, so many more don't publicly acknowledge them. In this episode Nurse Alice talks with Andrea Dalzell aka The Seated Nurse, a registered nurse, healthcare advocate, disability rights influ...
Sep 06, 2022•34 min•Season 2Ep. 87
Even when you put your best foot forward and do everything you can to take the best care of patients, every once in a while (or more often) you may encounter difficult family members who don't think you're doing enough or who are rude, verbally abusive and unrealistically demanding with you. So what do you do in those situations? In this episode Nurse Alice shares some of her own personal experiences and 6 tips for how you can deal with difficult patient family members. Read the full article her...
Aug 23, 2022•46 min•Season 2Ep. 86
New York, California, and Illinois have declared State Public Health Emergencies in light of growing cases of Monkeypox. In this episode Nurse Alice talks about Monkeypox. What is it? How and why is it spreading? And what nurses need to know. ***Since the original recording the Federal government has issued a national public health emergency for Monkeypox. Read the full article here
Aug 16, 2022•28 min•Season 2Ep. 85
While many of us are aware that the U.S. Supreme Court has officially reversed Roe v. Wade declaring that there is no longer any constitutional right to abortion, did you know that in response to that the federal government established a Reproductive rights task force through the Department of Justice to oversee state abortions laws to ensure they do not violate any federal laws. In this episode Nurse Alice talks about the DOJ's Reproductive Rights task force put into place to oversee state abor...
Aug 09, 2022•21 min•Season 2Ep. 84
Have you ever compared yourself or your situation to someone else's? While most people recommend not doing so because comparison can steal your joy, Nurse Alice shares the upside of comparison and helps you identify when it's okay to do it and when doing so becomes unhealthy. Read the article on nurse.org here https://nurse.org/articles/comparison-as-a-nurse/
Aug 02, 2022•30 min•Season 2Ep. 83
Have you ever had to be at work or school while experiencing a personal crisis at home? If you're like most people, you have and it was extremely challenging so don't feel like you're alone. Nurse Alice shares how she got through work in the ICU and graduate school after discovering her husband was cheating and had an extramarital child which ultimately resulted in their divorce. She was devastated and had a mental breakdown which prompted her to take some time off but eventually, she had to ret...
Jul 26, 2022•38 min•Season 2Ep. 82
Nurse Alice is a medical correspondent for NBC and has also been featured on many national TV shows like Good Morning America, The Doctors, Dr. Phil, Dr. Drew, and others. Follow your passion they say but will it sustain you until your passion job does? Here are some things you should consider before you jump ship at your current job to chase your dream. In this episode Nurse Alice shares her career lessons learned and walks you through how she followed her passion as she transitioned from direc...
Jul 19, 2022•28 min•Season 2Ep. 81
Have you ever dated someone at work? According to some surveys, up to 58% of employees have engaged in a romantic relationship with a colleague. I've thought about it but I've seen it go terribly wrong for others and have decided to avoid it by all means necessary.
Jul 05, 2022•27 min•Season 2Ep. 80
So you want to become a nurse but don't know where to start? Maybe you're not sure of which route to take? Or, perhaps you started your journey but got stalled along the way? Any of those things can be very frustrating, discouraging, and disappointing. But you can't give up. If you feel like you're stalled or stuck in your nursing journey and need some motivation to keep going - this episode is for you! Sometimes the best way to work through problems and challenges is to listen and learn from ot...
Jun 29, 2022•36 min•Season 2Ep. 79
In this episode Nurse Alice talks about a time when an employer crossed a work boundary and wanted her to work at home when she was out ill. Have you been in a similar situation? What did you do? Here are some tips on how you can set work boundaries with your employer.
Jun 21, 2022•31 min•Season 2Ep. 78
Now that things have opened up since the pandemic, one area of healthcare that's booming, more than any other, is cosmetic surgery. Everyone wants that summer beach body and many are resorting to surgery to help them get there. And even if that's not you, it's important to remind patients that any surgery, even elective cosmetic surgery, carries risks. In this episode, Nurse Alice speaks with Dr. Richard Westreich about 7 Cosmetic Surgery Tips everyone should know. He was voted by New York magaz...
Jun 16, 2022•41 min•Season 2Ep. 77
It's every nurse or healthcare worker's nightmare: shooting in the hospital. Sadly, violence against healthcare workers has been on the rise. You might feel helpless, if you do, that's normal. Just know- you're not alone, gun violence in hospitals can be prevented. In this episode, Nurse Alice talks about, Ways nurses can protect themselves from gun violence and workplace violence How to identify potentially violent patients How to prevent hospital shootings What hospitals are doing to protect h...
Jun 07, 2022•27 min•Season 2Ep. 76
Have you ever come to work and got what seemed to be one of the worst reports ever? What do you do? How do you handle the situation so it's a meaningful experience for everyone involved? Do you give feedback to the off-going nurse about how to improve upon their practice? The unsafest times for patients are during shift change, transfers and handoffs. Is that a surprise to anyone? This is the time when the baton is passed and important information can be missed and balls dropped. And when the re...
May 31, 2022•23 min•Season 2Ep. 75
