Yesterday, I gave my favorite lecture to young nurses who are about eight months into this wild profession. What follows below is a series of posts on Threads that I put up, as I reflected on the lecture. The lecture was on Bereavement and Caregiver Resiliency, because to this day we still have so few … Continue reading Encouraging Healthy Grief over our Patients
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New Blog Post for American Journal of Nursing: The Pitfalls of Being the Nice Patient
My newest blog post for American Journal of Nursing is up! When I and my husband both had significant medical crises last year, we wanted to be “nice” patients. As a nurse myself, I was hugely sympathetic to the stress and time pressures for those healthcare workers taking care of us. But instead of getting … Continue reading New Blog Post for American Journal of Nursing: The Pitfalls of Being the Nice Patient
Responding to my First Medical Emergency Outside the Hospital
I entered the market, trying to mentally review my grocery list. Suddenly a woman walked briskly by, tapped my shoulder and said “Hi, Hui-wen!” but then kept moving. I was completely confused by who was saying hi to me and why they were moving so unusually quickly. I kept looking to my right in the … Continue reading Responding to my First Medical Emergency Outside the Hospital
End of Year Thoughts
Life in this final month of this wild year has been appropriately chaotic (thanks norovirus!), so there isn’t sufficient headspace or time to pen a shiny, well-articulated post of reflection. Instead, just a few thoughts that are hopefully still worth your time and consideration: On our personal medical crises: We’ve weathered significant storms with my … Continue reading End of Year Thoughts
Wholehearted Nursing vs Codependency
How do you know if you’ve crossed the line from trying to be wholehearted and deeply empathetic, to being co-dependent? This was a question that came up in a couple of conversations at the recent (and incredible!) End Well conference. I’ve thought about it quite a bit over the years, as there is without doubt … Continue reading Wholehearted Nursing vs Codependency
The Art of Healthcare
(An earlier version of this article was recently printed in our PICU's newsletter.) There is a long list of technology, procedures and interventions to learn about in order to care for patients in the PICU. We can’t avoid marrying so much of our care for the patient with our management of all the technology and … Continue reading The Art of Healthcare
Returning to Bedside Nursing after My Own Cancer Journey
As described in previous posts, the first half of this year took me sideways on a cancer journey that I never anticipated. I had my lumpectomy in January, which was followed by a complication with a massive hematoma at the surgical site that had me swollen, in pain, and oozing old blood from my incision … Continue reading Returning to Bedside Nursing after My Own Cancer Journey
Latest Blog Post for American Journal of Nursing: Honoring the Personhood of Brain-Dead Patients
My latest blog post for American Journal of Nursing treads carefully into the art of caring for pediatric patients who have been pronounced brain-dead. These are some of the most sensitive spaces to inhabit as a nurse, some of the trickiest conversations to navigate with the parents and other loved ones struggling deeply with the … Continue reading Latest Blog Post for American Journal of Nursing: Honoring the Personhood of Brain-Dead Patients
Finishing Radiation: Waiting Room Story #2
Because radiation is a therapy that happens every day for weeks, you start to see some of the same people in the waiting room as your schedules overlap. I kept to myself but I certainly did notice a few faces that became a little more familiar, particularly those who would be leaving just as I … Continue reading Finishing Radiation: Waiting Room Story #2
Join Me at the End Well Symposium this November!
I am beyond thrilled to be speaking at the End Well Symposium in Los Angeles this November. I’m so grateful for their focus on pediatrics this year. It is a population that evokes particularly tender emotions when we talk about end of life, because goodness, they're only just getting started. It is a tremendous privilege to be … Continue reading Join Me at the End Well Symposium this November!
The Heart of Nursing 