Ask Nurse Alice

If the past two years have taught the world anything, it's that nurses are not okay. Nurses are burned out, many leaving the profession and for several reasons including having to work short-staffed in stressful, demanding, and hazardous conditions while being underpaid, undervalued, and overworked often at the risk of their own physical and mental health being. So of course the nursing shortage (which in fact existed well before COVID) has now been exacerbated and accelerated. So now what???

In this episode Nurse Alice shares, some of the findings of the "This is the State of Nursing" Report by Nurse.org where nearly 1,500 nurses were surveyed to find out how they felt about the past year and to get the real reasons behind the nursing shortage. They were asked about the real issues they are facing every day during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Why did we do a survey? To capture qualitative and quantitative data to better understand the current state of the nursing workforce. If we want to resolve the nursing shortage, we need to fully understand the systemic and underlying issues and work with hospital leadership, nursing allies, and politicians to create solutions that address the issues plaguing the profession.

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More than 100,000 U.S. women undergo some form of mastectomy each year. It is typically performed to treat breast cancer, but, in some cases, it is performed to prevent the risk of breast cancer. But what about life after the mastectomy? 

For some women after breast cancer and mastectomy, it can leave them feeling a void and having a desire to restore their natural-looking breasts. While this is sometimes possible with breast reconstructive surgery there are options and interim products that can help women feel whole, feminine, and confident again.

In this episode Nurse Alice speaks with Jasmine Jones, founder of Myya, the first direct to consumer, insurance-billable, and inclusive intimates/prosthetics brand for anyone post-mastectomy.  Inspired by her grandmother's battle with breast cancer and limited mastectomy care, Jasmine launched Myya during Breast Cancer Awareness Month with the goal to upend traditional healthcare’s approach to post-mastectomy care by adding a fresh perspective to an antiquated industry and breaking down stigmas around mastectomy care in the process.

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The job-hunting process can be a tedious and daunting process especially when hundreds of other nurses are applying for the same position. After submitting your job application, it's usually a hurry up and wait game as hospitals and health care employers sift through hundreds of resumes. So how can you make your resume stand out and get recognized? And once you get the phone call from the recruiter to move forward with an interview - how can you best prepare yourself to ace the interview? Then once face to face with the hiring manager what are some of the things you should and shouldn't say during the interview?

In this episode Nurse Alice speaks with Amanda Guarniere,  an Ivy-league educated Nurse Practitioner and Career Mentor who helps nursing professionals find, land, and love their dream jobs. She is the founder of The Résumé Rx as well as The NP Society, a professional membership community that focuses on helping NPs thrive in the clinical setting and beyond, not to mention she is the host of the Nurse Becoming Podcast. 

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Did you secure the bag during the pandemic? Maybe you took a pandemic travel nursing assignment?  Added a couple of extra shifts for OT/DT? Or maybe you cashed in on some bonus pay? Either way, you probably made a little (or a lot of) extra money. So what are you going to do with it? While paying off debt and treating yourself are some of the first few things that come to mind. Have you ever considered investing in real estate?

In this episode Nurse Alice talks to mortgage loan officer Ivan Simental NMLS# 1762746 , host of The Mortgage Reports podcast, to discuss why it's a good idea for nurses to invest in real estate. 

Seriously, why pay rent to pay someone else's mortgage when you could buy a house? Or maybe you already own a home - have you ever considered a rental investment property so you gain monthly by renting your home out and build equity in your home that you can later cash out? Ivan also shares what nurses should know about the real estate market, what types of real estate options are available, and what you need to get buyers ready.

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As healthcare providers and caregivers, we are often encouraging others to take care of their mental health and wellness,  but do we do enough of that for ourselves? Why do we not follow our own instructions? And why do some of us feel bad when we want to leave unhealthy situations?

In this episode Nurse Alice talks to psychotherapist, Dr. Michele Finnernan, about common mental issues she's been seeing this past year with healthcare professionals including compassion fatigue and burnout. She also helps us understand why we feel guilty when we want to leave a toxic work environment, why we fear advocating for changes in our work environment and discusses how we can handle workplace violence.  

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No one goes to work planning to have a bad day but sometimes things happen - a traffic accident makes you late to work; you have a disagreement with a co-worker or you get busy and forget to complete a task. If this is an unusual occurrence and it didn't cause any harm to a patient then grace is typically provided however if this turns out to be more of a pattern for you then you definitely want to listen in. 

In this episode Nurse Alice talks to nursing leader Vernell Davis about three common issues that can land a nurse in the corrective action process including time & attendance, communication issues, and behavioral standards. They also talk about what happens at each step of the corrective action process - everything from informal teachable moments to formal verbal warnings, written warnings, final warnings, suspensions, and possible termination.  

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In this episode Nurse Alice speaks with Molly Rindt, RN and talent advocate at Incredible Health, a tech company that has changed the way nurses get hired by having hospitals apply to nurses. With the help of technology, Incredible health has flipped the hiring script to match nurses with what they're looking for with what the hospital is looking for and then hospitals apply to the nurse. In addition to that Incredible Health helps set up phone interviews, help with resume reviews, interview prep tips and serve as a mentor and guide during the entire process, all the way down to the offer stage. 

Are you a nurse who is tired, bored, or just frustrated with the traditional job search? Are you tired of filling out multiple job applications with different hospitals, clinics, travel & staffing agencies, and posting your resume online to only wait on what feels like forever to hear back?  You deserve to know your options and don't want to wait forever for a hospital to get to your application so perhaps Incredible Health can help you. 

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While the fear of dying from Covid has been curbed by vaccines, masks, new treatments, and the most recent and prevalent strain, Omicron appearing to have more mild symptoms than previous strains, it doesn't exclude the fact that 10-20%% of those who survive any covid infection from developing Long Haul Covid.

In this episode Nurse Alice speaks with Ashok Gupta, a Chronic Illness, Long Covid, and Neuroplasticity Expert in treating chronic illness through neuroplasticity principles.  He has been researching long covid from the beginning and answers all of our Long Covid questions. He talks about what Long Covid is (and isn't), what's happening in the body, and explains what Neuroplasticity treatment is and how it can help with treating it. 

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When you're hungry, at work, they already know your food order. When you're talking, s/he can almost always finish your sentences. S/he can read your body language and facial expressions and know exactly what you're thinking without you having to say a word. And when something goes down at work, s/he is down for you like four flat tires.  

If you're spending 40 hours or more each week at work with someone like this then this is likely your work wife/husband.  

These are the people who get you through the day, who encourage you to give your best at your job, and who make you laugh during lunchtime chats. And work spouse relationships can go much deeper than a simple break-room friendship

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It's one thing to be a nurse and knows the patient's experience but it's a whole different experience being the nurse who takes care of the patient who happens to be a nurse. 

In this episode Nurse, Alice shares some of her own personal encounters as a patient wherein one situation she had to pull the "I am a nurse card" for the nurse to address her concerns to another instance when staff shortchanged her patient education assuming that because she's a nurse she was fully aware of everything happening during a time when was in so much discomfort she could barely focus. 

Nurse Alice also addresses the myth that nurses are the worst patients. Are they really or are nurse patients perceived as such because they hold staff nurses accountable for all the things we know nurses are supposed to do but may not because they've cut some corners? Check out the tips she shares so you're not caught off guard the next time you take care of a nurse-patient.

Read more at Nurse.org 

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