I first had the pleasure of meeting Emmy Award-winning producer, Lindsey Whissel Fenton, when she invited me to be a panelist for her Speaking Grief webinar on "Minimizing Burnout in Death Care Professionals." Her deep empathy and curiosity about the deep and honest things that make us human shine through her work, and I am … Continue reading Podcast Interview on The Apologies Podcast Airs Tomorrow!
communication
On Humility and Reading the Room
Yesterday I was talking with another nurse about a wonderfully vivacious coworker who used to work night shift in our unit years ago. She had a way about her where she could create easy conversation with any patient and family member, shine a bright smile and lighten the mood of just about any room. We … Continue reading On Humility and Reading the Room
Seen from the Outside In and Inside Out
When I was first getting my diagnostic mammogram, ultrasound, and ultimately biopsy for the lump I’d found, I remember being so struck by how busy the breast clinic was. The women sitting in the clinic were of varying ages and ethnic backgrounds, with differing clothing and hairstyles giving clues to our personalities. But one by … Continue reading Seen from the Outside In and Inside Out
An Unexpected Remedy for My Moral Distress
When Katherine first started bringing her very medically-complicated daughter into our pediatric ICU, we all marveled that her child had even survived the early months of infancy. All the odds were against them, but they were tough, this mom and daughter pair. I didn’t know what her pregnancy and birth journeys were like. Did she … Continue reading An Unexpected Remedy for My Moral Distress
Stewarding Power as a Nurse
I am in a position of power as a pediatric ICU nurse. I can hold a wriggly patient down, poke him with needles, insert tubes into her nose. I can give or withhold food to a hungry child per a doctor’s orders. I can abruptly wake my patient from much-needed sleep at any time, day … Continue reading Stewarding Power as a Nurse
New Blog Post for AJN: The Gift of Feedback
My latest blog post for American Journal of Nursing is up, titled "The Gift of Feedback." I take a look at a couple experiences where I asked for - and was asked for - feedback in the most gracious ways, and yet still struggled to find open, smooth venues of communication. It takes ongoing practice, … Continue reading New Blog Post for AJN: The Gift of Feedback
A Letter from a Christian PICU Nurse to the Western Christian Church
To my Western Christian brothers and sisters, I come to you as a fellow Christian and as a pediatric ICU nurse with a burden and a plea. I come to you as someone who knew in theory and through some personal experience before I became a nurse, that this world can be cruel and unfair. … Continue reading A Letter from a Christian PICU Nurse to the Western Christian Church
What’s in a Name
I shared this story on my personal blog after my Narrative Ethics class in my Narrative Medicine program prompted me to think upon the story of my name again. I find it so pertinent to the times we live in, attempts to build connections with our patients and the real barriers we can face with … Continue reading What’s in a Name
Guest Blog Post for Crossroads: The Worthwhile Art of Careful Listening
In an incredibly noisy world - particularly for us introverts - the art of careful listening proves to make all the difference for my family friend hospitalized in the ICU who had only one silent but extraordinary way left to make his voice heard. My short Crossroads blog post for The Intima: A Journal of … Continue reading Guest Blog Post for Crossroads: The Worthwhile Art of Careful Listening
Essay for Spring 2020 Issue of Intima: A Journal of Narrative Medicine
My essay, Best Brother, published in the Spring 2020 issue of Intima: A Journal of Narrative Medicine, tells the story of a long-time family friend who suffered a severe spinal cord injury last summer and, like so many of our patients and families, was faced with sudden life-altering decisions in the ICU. But with a … Continue reading Essay for Spring 2020 Issue of Intima: A Journal of Narrative Medicine
The Heart of Nursing 