There is an interesting article on lemondrop.com by Laura Gilbert about the recent “run” of TV dramas featuring a nurse as the main character. She begs the question “Why are we suddenly so obsessed with nurses?” and hypothesizes about the answer. Read the post and my response here

How would you answer the above question?

While speaking at an association meeting (non-nursing) someone came up to me and said, “Do you help nurses who want to get out of nursing??” I said “Yes. I help them find another path in nursing if that’s what it takes.” This same person told me that her sister worked in a hospital, was totally burnt out and that she and many of her friends wanted to get out of nursing.

It saddens me that many nurses don’t realize that they have options within the profession - that so many nurses work themselves into the ground and then look for another profession. I can’t even imagine how many good nurses we have lost because of this.

Of course there are many reasons why nurses get burnt out - lack of adequate self-care, staying in a toxic or non-supportive work environment rather than looking for another job, not valuing their work or realizing all the transferable skills they have, getting into a rut and not working on career development.

Unfortunately some of these nurses then go to generic career counselors (rather than RN Career Coaches) who help them find a new occupation because they do not have an understanding of the profession, the skill set that nurses possess, and the vast array of opportunities that exist for nurses.

Be sure to encourage any nurses you encounter (including yourself) who want to leave nursing that they should fully explore their options, get out to nursing career fairs, attend professional association meetings, seminars and conventions to network and meet new people, and talk to folks who work in non-traditional specialties. Many of us need a change of work environment and specialty from time to time - sometimes a dramatic one. We also need to tend to our own self-care and ongoing career development. Consider reading or recommending The ULTIMATE Career Guide for Nurses - Practical Advice for Thriving at Every Stage of Your Career. Find out more here.

I’ve just had the opportunity to view the first episode of Nurse Jackie - a new drama premiering on June 8 on the Showtime Channel. You can preview the episode at http://www.sho.com/   by entering the password “shift happens.”

Although Jackie is a very flawed character, the episode portrays some strong, positive, and interesting realities of nursing as opposed to the many physician-centric shows that are currently airing where nurses are minor, background characters existing to serve the physician. There is no doubt that the show will create controversy on many levels and it will be interesting to see what happens once the show airs.

As television viewing goes, I found the episode to be compelling. It left me wanting more. And as a nurse, especially a former ER nurse, I could see some of myself in Jackie (No, I’m not talking about the drug addiction and unethical/illegal stuff) .  See what you think and share your thoughts.

With a nationwide shortage of primary care physicians and a need for more cost effective, accessible, and high quality health care, nurse practitioners continue to take the lead in preventive and primary care, especially with underserved populations. Read a related article and watch the accompanying video clip here.

The NP quoted in the article and on the video says at one point that NPs are not replacing “primary care providers.” While I understand that she is trying to emphasize that NPs are not trying to replace physicians, NPs are one type of primary care provider and will continue to be so.

 NPs will play a prominent role in the inevitable healthcare reforms of the current administration. It’s about time.

Some of you may be familiar with Donna Maheady’s work with disabled nurses and nursing students. If you aren’t, be sure to visit the online community/resource center she created at www.exceptionalnurse.com. She also developed a wonderful calendar and related youtube video to showcase/celebrate nurses with disAbilities. Check it out at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EJkQVhgwq0. And be sure to read/recomend her wonderful books Nursing Students With Disabilities and No Nurse Left Behind. Please consider making a donation to support her work and keep the web site going.

An op-ed piece by Sandy Summers, RN appeared in today’s Boston Sun. Check it out at  http://tinyurl.com/qjkl82   Summer’s assertion, the subject of her book Saving Lives, is that TV portrayals of nurses harm the public image of the profession and perpetuate incorrect and damaging stereotypes that nurses are minor players in the world of healthcare. Learn more about Summers and her work at www.truthaboutnursing.org  which was formerly the Center for Nursing Advocacy.

I recently rediscovered an interesting and empowering movement known as the Nurse Manifest Project which was created by a group of nursing scholars. The web site www.nursemanifest.com describes the movement as “A Call to Conscience and Action…To raise awareness, To inspire action, and To open discussion of issues that are vital to nursing and healthcare around the globe.” This could also describe my reasosns for creating the Nurse Power! web site several years ago.

I encourage you to read the manifesto - one section at a time - and reflect on it’s meaning. Based on the “Suggestions for Action” section of the Manifesto page http://www.nursemanifest.com/manifesto.htm, what changes can you make/have you made in your personal or professional life, or what actions can you (have you) implement to promote the principles and practices suggested there? Why and how is this important to nursing? I’m interested to hear your reactions, your actions, and your thoughts on all of this.

What nurses wear in patient care settings is a long and hotly debated subject. Years ago we all wore white uniforms and shoes and the females - caps. We stood out and were easily identifiable as nurses. Then the trend became to wear scrubs and nurses faded into a generic sea of healthcare workers, indistinguishable in many cases from techs, aides, physician residents, therapists, housekeeping staff, unit secretaries, etc.

Once scrubs became the norm, we started to get “creative” with various patterns, sports team logos, cartoon characters, hearts and logos, etc. With or without the patterns, it remained hard for patients and visitors and even some staff members to know who’s who. The name badges we wear are often covered with sweaters or lab coats or flipped over so our name, credentials and title are obscured.

Many hospitals have gone to color-coded scrubs so that both patients and staff can tell who’s who. Read about one such hospital that instituted this change www.daytondailynews.com

My husband was recently hospitalized and the facility he was in used this system. I can’t tell you how great it was to know who the nurses were at a glance and to be able to immediately identify who walked into the room or know who to flag down in the hall when we needed something. It’s an idea whose time has come.

An interesting study has come out of the University of Buffalo about how second career nurses are changing the face of nursing — for the better. The study indicated that second career nurses, those who had a previous degree in another major before pursuing a degree in nursing, are usually older, more motivated, and more satisfied with their work than new nurses for whom nursing was their first career. Second career nurses, because they have more life experience, have better coping mechanisms and are better prepared to deal with workplace stress and conflict. They provide a great pool to draw from to address the current nursing shortage. And while the study points out that they may have shorter work lives because they are starting later, I have noticed that they may be staying longer in the traditional clinical setting than many first career nurses. A new second career nurse who I recently interviewed told me that she could never have done nursing when she was just out of high school but felt much more prepared for the challenges and responsibilities now — 12 years later. Read the release here

Second career nurses are entering the profession with such diverse work experience and educational backgrounds — many with advanced degrees. That, combined with their maturity and accompanying confidence and assertiveness, will only serve to strengthen the profession and help to move us forward. And the fact that many of these second career nurses are men, will further diversify and thus strengthen the profession as well.

There is a fascinating study and proposal out by the California Nurses Association http://www.calnurses.org/ about the benefits of expanding Medicare for all Americans. This is a must read for all nurses to begin to understand the direction that this country will likely go in to provide healthcare coverage for all citizens, what the financial impact would be, and how a one-payer system would benefit everyone. Read the press release at http://www.calnurses.org .

I hear so many people, both in and out of healthcare, speak with disdain about “socialized medicine.” Socialized medicine just means publicly funded, publicly administered healthcare. The fact is that we have had a form of socialized medicine - Medicare - for over 40 years in the US. However, it has only been available to senior citizens and disabled individuals. This proposal recommends extending Medicare benefits for all. To do so, according to their research, would cost less than what the federal government recently paid to bail out CitiCorp. Nurses are lobbying the Obama camp to consider it. What would likely happen to private insurers? Many of them, who incidentally have been experiencing their own financial difficulties for years, would continue to operate for those who want it and can afford to pay for it and for those employers who wish to continue to offer private healthcare benefits to their employees. But Medicare would be there for those who are self-employed, retired, out of work, have jobs that don’t provide healthcare benefits, etc. 

Let’s get away from the phrase “socialized medicine” since it makes so many people cringe and is vastly misunderstood, and shift to the concept of “universal access to healthcare.” Nurses have any amazing opportunity to take a lead in this process and be part of the debate and the solution.

The media seems to have suddenly glommed on to the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree and the fact that it will allow advanced practice nurses to use the title ‘doctor.’ I spoke with a reporter about this last week (who decided she wanted a ‘hands-on’ nurse to comment and not me - maybe she didn’t like my viewpoint or didn’t think I was a ‘real nurse’) and then found a related blog post on the glamour.com site today which I responded to. Here’s a line from the blog post: “When these nursing students complete the program, they’re bestowed the title “doctor” even though they haven’t gone through medical school.” Horrors! Someone with a doctoral degree using the title Doctor!! Who ever heard of such a thing? Read the original post and my long response on 2/3 at http://www.glamour.com/health-fitness/blogs/vitamin-g/2009/02/health-controversy-is-your-doc.html#comments.

While watching TV recently, I saw an infomercial for a fitness program created by an RN. I was very excited for a variety of reasons. For starters, it is always thrilling to see or hear about a nurse who has found an innovative way to improve the health and wellness of the masses. I was also thrilled to see the RN credential appear on the TV screen. But I was particularly happy that this nurse, who also has a fitness credential, chose to include her RN credential and have the announcer verbally state that she was a nurse. What is so surprising about this? I have observed that many RNs, once they move into non-traditional roles such as administrators, holistic practitioners, fitness experts, business owners, etc. sometimes no longer see themselves as nurses and drop the RN after their name. On the contrary, they are simply expanding their practice and their role but they don’t always see things that way. (Read about this nurse in the January edition of Nursing Connections http://www.dcardillo.com/newsletter/cardillo-jan09.html)

I once questioned a nurse who had a high-ranking position in a hospital as to why she didn’t use the RN on her business card. Her response surprised me. She said that because many people see nurses as one dimensional, she didn’t want anyone to see her in a limiting way. My response was, “How would anyone know what nurses are capable of and what they are actually doing if we hide the fact that we’re a nurse when we move beyond the bedside?” I also pointed out that her RN credential was very relevant in her role as an administrator and gave her additional credibility. After all, who better to manage and lead in healthcare than a nurse?

I recently met a nurse entrepreneur who had a healthcare consulting business. I noticed that she didn’t use her RN on her business card and questioned her about that. She was at a loss as to why she didn’t think to include it and told me that she would add it when she had her cards redone. Upon reflection, she realized that it would work to her advantage to include that in her marketing materials.

Don’t sell yourself short or underestimate the value of your nursing credential and background. That RN is something that we all worked long and hard to achieve. The public consistently ranks RNs as the most trustworthy of all professionals. Every RN possesses a great body of knowledge and experience that is valuable and marketable in a variety of settings. Besides that, our nursing background enhances everything we do in healthcare and beyond. It sets us apart. Be proud of those initials after your name and promote them proudly.