Clinical Pearls

Nursing is the nation's largest health care profession, with nearly 5.2 million registered nurses and more than 355,000 nurse practitioners in the United States. With this many members, nurses have the potential to profoundly influence policy on a global scale. When nurses influence the politics that improve the delivery of health care, they are ultimately advocating for their patients.

On this episode of clinical pearls, we are joined by Dr. Eileen Meyer. She is a nurse practitioner and the Assistant Director to Advanced Practice Providers at UAB Medicine, which employs over 900 Advanced Practice Providers. She also is a Clinical Assistant Professor at the UAB School of Nursing and teaches the Health Policy and Politics Course. She served as Vice President for Health Policy for the Nurse Practitioner Alliance of Alabama and now assume the role of Senior Policy Advisor representing over 8,000 nurse practitioners in Alabama.

Links:
Nurse Practitioner Alliance of Alabama

American Nurses Association

American Association of Nurse Practitioners

Alabama State Nurses Association

On this episode of Clinical Pearls, we are joined by UABSON Assistant Professor Dr. Lauren Mays, a Family Nurse Practitioner who maintains a clinic practice at the Well House. Lauren was recently awarded a 2023 Padma Award. The Padma Awards, sponsored by the UAB Commission on the Status of Women, shine a light on those who go above and beyond to persevere in support of underrepresented populations.

In 2022, several international organizations worked together to highlight the impact of human trafficking in a report called Global Estimates of Modern Slavery. They estimate that in 2021, 27.6 million people around the world were in forced labor. Experts suggest that the impact of human trafficking can be difficult to measure due to the “hidden nature of the crime,” among other reasons. 

The future is here! Today’s guest is Paul Malito, Nurse Manager for UAB’s TeleICU. Malito says the lack of bedside experience among nurses is a problem nationally. On average, nurses have fewer than six months of bedside experience, and that has been further limited by the COVID-19 pandemic over the past three years. An operations center for the Tele-ICU and Tele-Acute Nursing units connects less experienced bedside nurses with those who have more experience.

According to Malito, telehealth helps accomplish two key goals for inpatient care: proactively addressing changing patient conditions and making more efficient use of experienced nurses’ knowledge. Three new inpatient platforms take advantage of in-room technology that allows constant virtual monitoring and interaction to better respond to symptoms. Over 320 UAB Hospital patient rooms are wired with virtual patient monitoring equipment that enables nurses to observe and interact with patients with audio and/or video, communicate with bedside nurses, and engage emergency alarms.

Links: 

https://www.uabmedicine.org/news/nurses-use-telehealth-to-improve-service-and-patient-outcomes/#

Access to health care has for a long time been used as an indicator on the health status of communities. Healthy people 2030 defines access to health care as the timely use of personal health services to achieve the best health outcomes. Providing avenues that improve access to health care services improves the overall health status of a community.

In this episode, Dr. Elizabeth Munoz, a certified Nurse-Midwife and Co-Director of the UABSON Nurse-Midwifery Pathway, talks to us about the critical role nurse midwives play in addressing this issue.

Helpful links for more information:
UAB Nurse Midwifery Pathway Page
March of Dimes Maternity Care Deserts Report
American College of Midwives Website
Journal of Midwifery and Women’s Health’s “Ask the Midwife”
Joint Statement of Practice Relations Between ACNM and ACOG
Where You Live Matters

Join hosts Dr. Tracie White and Dr. BJ Haamankuli as they preview the new season of Clinical Pearls. 

Learn more about the laws for governing nurse practice.
Panelists include Natalie Baker, DNP, CRNP, ANP-BC, GNP-BC, CNE, GS-C, FAANP, FAAN and Elizabeth Crooks, DNP, RN, CNE

Translate knowledge for improvements in clinical practice.
Panelists include Curry Bordelon, DNP, MBA, CRNP and Terri Poe, DNP, RN, NE-BC

Become an Adult-Gero Acute or Primary Care Nurse Practitioner.
Panelists include Cori Johnson, DNP, CRNP, AGNP-C and Rebecca Suttle, DNP, CRNP, AGACNP-BC

Hone your skills for management and executive leadership in healthcare organizations. 
Panelists include Greg Eagerton, DNP, RN, NEA-BC and Marisa Wilson, DNSc, MHSc, RN, CPHIMS, RN-BC, FAMIA, FAAN

Expand your horizons in nursing fields. 
Panelists include Curry Bordelon, DNP, MBA, CRNP and Tedra Smith, DNP, CRNP, CPNP-PC, CNE, CHSE