Host Colton Lord is back with another nurse news segment of the Club Nurse Podcast, breaking down five of the biggest stories in nursing this week.

In this episode, Colton covers the American Nurses Association's lawsuit against the Department of Education over the new $100,000 federal loan cap for nursing graduate students, a King County conviction that exposed a fake nurse staffing scheme placing unlicensed workers in long-term care facilities, the tragic death of a 19-year-old CNA who collapsed on shift at Children's of Alabama, California's hard-won safe staffing ratios for psychiatric nurses after 27 years of waiting, and a story that proves AI still can't replace human eyes — a nurse anesthetist diverted fentanyl for months while AI monitoring software missed every red flag.

Jump Ahead

00:33 — Welcome back and intro to this week's nurse news segment

00:50 — Story 1: ANA and 9 nursing groups sue the Department of Education over the $100,000 federal loan cap

03:30 — Why the professional degree designation matters for funding

05:00 — Story 2: King County jury convicts the boss behind a fake nurse staffing scheme

07:42 — Story 3: 19-year-old CNA Joquia Renee Morgan dies one hour after collapsing on shift

09:30 — Why nurses need permission to take care of themselves at work

10:30 — Story 4: California's psychiatric nurses win safe staffing ratios after 27 years

12:30 — The cost, the delay, and what nurses are still pushing for

13:30 — Story 5: AI fails to catch a nurse anesthetist diverting fentanyl for 4 months

15:30 — Why AI still needs humans in healthcare

16:30 — Closing thanks and where to find more

Each story comes with Colton's honest take on what it means for nurses on the ground and why staying informed matters. Whether you're at the bedside or working in a non-clinical role, these are the stories shaping nursing right now.

For full articles and updates, visit nurse.org/news. Listen to the full episode at nurse.org/clubnurse.

nurse news, Club Nurse Podcast, ANA lawsuit, federal loan cap nursing, fake nurses, CNA death, safe staffing, psychiatric nurse ratios, drug diversion, AI healthcare, Colton Lord, nursing news 2026, healthcare policy, nurse workforce, nurse advocacy

We spotlight the nurse and mom behind the viral children’s character Nurse Dolly. Georgia nurse Emari Etta-Tawo created the YouTube series Mini Med School to help kids feel less afraid of doctor visits through songs, storytelling, stuffed animals, and playful medical lessons.

We discuss how Nurse Dolly is making health education fun and accessible for families, why representation in healthcare matters, and how one nurse’s creativity is inspiring the next generation of caregivers. Plus, hear how parents and fellow nurses are responding to the show’s trusted, educational approach to teaching kids about hygiene, anatomy, wellness, and confidence in healthcare settings.

Tune in to learn how Nurse Dolly is turning nursing knowledge into singalongs, smiles, and meaningful impact for children everywhere.

Nurse, patient, and founder Rachell Dumas joins host Colton Lord on the Club Nurse Podcast to share how her own near-death experience inspired HEARD, an AI-powered app helping patients advocate for themselves.

Rachell has a background in trauma, neuro ICU, and COVID care, and traveled to New York City during the height of the pandemic. After nine pregnancy losses, two brain surgeries, and being dismissed in the ER while showing stroke symptoms, she built HEARD to give patients the tools she had as a nurse: research, real-time guidance, and a way to escalate care when something is wrong.

In this episode, Rachell and Colton dig into why misdiagnosis kills 250,000 patients a year, how AI can both help and harm in healthcare, and why nurses are some of the best innovators in the country. She also opens up about the trauma of COVID, the power of therapy, and why every nurse should trust their instincts.

If you're a nurse with an idea, a patient who feels unheard, or someone curious about where AI and healthcare meet, this conversation is for you.

Learn more at myherdapp.com. Listen to the full episode at nurse.org/clubnurse.

Connect with Colton on social media:

Instagram: @coltonalanlord, @club.nurse
TikTok: @nursecolton

Happy Nurses Week! In this special Nurses Week 2026 episode, host Colton Lord celebrates the 5.7 million nurses across the country and unpacks why this year carries extra weight, with Congress officially declaring 2026 the "Year of the Power of Nurses" and the American Nurses Association marking its 130th anniversary.

Colton breaks down everything happening this week, from the 200+ iconic landmarks worldwide lighting up red (including One World Trade Center and Boston's Zakim Bridge) to the ANA's nationwide hospital tour. He also rounds up all the freebies and deals nurses should be cashing in on, including Chipotle's giveaway of 100,000 free entree gift cards, daily prize drops at nurse.org, and exclusive discounts from brands like Lululemon, Figs, Carhartt, and Clove.

But beyond the free burritos and red lights, Colton closes with a heartfelt reminder: your worth as a nurse isn't measured by the rocks, cup of noodles, or empty Ziploc bags some hospitals hand out. Whether you're at the bedside or have pivoted away from it, your impact is real, your care is remembered, and it's always okay to prioritize yourself. Plus, a sneak peek at upcoming guest episodes you won't want to miss.

Tune in, soak up the appreciation, and go get your freebies, bestie. You deserve it.

Connect with Colton on social media:

Instagram: @coltonalanlord, @club.nurse
TikTok: @nursecolton

This week on Club Nurse, Colton is back with a full rundown of the wild, heartbreaking, and wholesome moments happening in healthcare. From jaw-dropping OR mistakes to cosmic-level nurse appreciation, we’re hitting all the feels. 👀

In this episode, we cover:

• Surgeon charged with manslaughter after allegedly removing the wrong organ, despite nurses sounding the alarm
• Dodgers pitcher Alex Vesia honoring the nurses and clinicians who cared for his family after the loss of his newborn daughter
• LPN Victoria Alexander tragically killed at work by her estranged husband in a domestic violence incident
• Nurse Blake expanding his “But Did You Die?” comedy tour with 35+ new North American cities
• Artemis II astronaut Reed Wiseman proposing to name a lunar crater “Carroll” after his late NICU nurse wife

Jump Ahead to Listen:

[00:01:37] Surgeon removes wrong organ, faces manslaughter charges
[00:05:15] Dodgers pitcher honors nurses after daughter's death
[00:08:54] Nurse killed at work by estranged husband
[00:11:07] Nurse Blake adds 35+ cities to comedy tour
[00:12:58] Astronaut honors late NICU nurse wife with lunar crater name

Connect with Colton on social media:

Instagram: @coltonalanlord, @club.nurse
TikTok: @nursecolton

This week on Club Nurse, Colton is breaking down some truly wild healthcare news that has nurses everywhere shaking their heads. From ignored red flags to terrifying workplace violence and the most unhinged discharge situation ever, we’re talking about it all.

Here’s what we get into:

• A nurse who was fired after sounding the alarm about a sketchy med tech… before he allegedly murdered a resident.
• An update on Trump’s proposed $100,000 H-1B visa fee and a new bipartisan bill trying to protect international healthcare workers.
• A 69-year-old patient who shot a healthcare worker multiple times inside a Fresno clinic.
• A discharged patient who has refused to leave her hospital room for five months and the hospital’s lawsuit to finally get her out.

Jump Ahead to Listen:
[00:02:26] Nurse’s warning ignored before assisted living resident killed
[00:06:28] Update on proposed $100,000 H1B visa fee for clinicians
[00:07:47] Patient shoots healthcare worker in Fresno clinic
[00:09:53] Patient refuses to leave hospital room for five months

Connect with Colton on social media:

Instagram: @coltonalanlord, @club.nurse
TikTok: @nursecolton

This week on Club Nurse, Colton is back with a Nurse News roundup that actually respects your attention span. No fluff, no doom spiral, just fast updates that matter to you on the floor.

Here’s what you’re getting into:

• California hospitals rolling out weapon detectors at main, ER, and L&D entrances—and what that could mean for your safety at work.
• A 63-year-old Michigan nursing student showing you it’s actually never too late to go for the RN.
• Night shift nurses getting less safety support than days—and why nights still feels like the hospital’s forgotten shift.
• The Healthcare Is Human Act, developed with FIGS, which could bring a $6,000 tax credit for nurses and other clinicians working in shortage areas.

Jump Ahead to Listen:
[00:02:31] New California law: hospital weapons detectors
[00:06:23] 63-year-old Michigan nursing student Margie
[00:10:20] Night shift nurses feeling unsupported
[00:12:11] Proposed $6,000 Healthcare is Human tax credit
[00:13:45] Nurse.org awards shout-outs

Connect with Colton on social media:
Instagram: @coltonalanlord, @club.nurse
TikTok: @nursecolton

Nursing news but make it actually interesting. Colton is back breaking down the latest healthcare headlines nurses should know about. From policy updates and AI charting tools to wild legal cases and medical breakthroughs, it’s a quick catch-up on what’s happening across the nursing world.

This episode covers:

• Nurses getting drafted? Let’s unpack the actual law and why it’s not happening right now.
• A nurse creating a kid-friendly YouTube series (Nurse Dolly) to make health and doctor visits less scary for kids.
• Wisconsin trying to pass a bill for safer nurse-to-patient ratios and banning mandatory overtime.
• A new blood test that might predict Alzheimer’s symptoms years before they start.
• Epic rolling out AI tools that could seriously cut down nurse charting time.
• A travel nurse suing over missing pay and overtime… because apparently someone thought nurses wouldn’t notice.
• A nurse fired after reusing an insulin vial linked to an HIV-positive patient (yikes).

Jump Ahead to Listen:
[00:02:13] Could nurses be drafted?
[00:04:17] Nurse Dolly kids’ health YouTube channel
[00:05:49] Wisconsin Nurse Staffing and Patient Protection Act
[00:08:10] New blood test predicting Alzheimer’s symptoms
[00:09:32] Epic AI tools to cut nurse charting
[00:11:22] NYC strike travel nurse wage lawsuit
[00:13:08] Nurse fired after reusing HIV-contaminated insulin vial

Connect with Colton on social media:
Instagram: @coltonalanlord, @club.nurse
TikTok: @nursecolton

Nurses deserve better than spending half a shift glued to a computer, and Microsoft might finally be helping. This week on Club Nurse, Colton talks with Mary Varghese Presti, former Johns Hopkins peds nurse turned Microsoft Health & Life Sciences leader, about Dragon Copilot for Nurses. They break down how ambient AI in Epic Rover can capture assessments in real time and help populate flowsheets, cutting down charting time and mental load. They also talk privacy, why this tool was built specifically for nursing workflows, and how nurses can stay involved as AI rolls out in healthcare.   

If you’ve ever stayed late to chart, skipped water, or held your pee for a heroic and medically inadvisable amount of time, this one’s for you.  

>>AI That Charts for Nurses? Microsoft’s New Ambient Tool Could Ease Burnout and Save Time

Jump Ahead to Listen:

[00:00:48] Introducing guest Mary Varghese Presti
[00:03:04] Mary’s path from bedside to policy and tech
[00:05:24] Why talk about AI and nursing now
[00:06:21] What Dragon Copilot for nurses is
[00:07:31] Nurses as “silent surveillance system”
[00:10:23] Using Copilot in noisy and ED settings
[00:11:39] Built specifically for nursing documentation
[00:13:05] Step-by-step: using Copilot in a patient room
[00:17:21] From pilots to general availability in hospitals
[00:18:08] Faster, richer documentation and patient safety
[00:21:21] Adopting new tech and changing nurse workflows

Connect with Colton on social media:
Instagram: @coltonalanlord, @club.nurse
TikTok: @nursecolton

Connect with Mary on LinkedIn

This week’s news is giving myth-busting, true crime, nurse solidarity, Super Bowl romance, strike wins, and discount meds. We’re running through the biggest nurse headlines in the exact order they dropped, so you can stay informed without doom-scrolling your nervous system into oblivion.

• Joint Commission clears up the “no drinks at the nurses station” myth and basically says… your water bottle isn’t the villain.
• Netflix’s The Investigation of Lucy Letby dives into the neonatal nurse case and hospital red flags.
• All 14 OB nurses resign after a Tennessee hospital shuts down its entire L&D unit. Rural healthcare crisis, unlocked.
• A male nurse gets legally married during Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl halftime show. Main character energy.
• NYC nurses secure a major strike victory with staffing and pay wins.
• Kaiser nurses in CA and Hawaii continue striking, with more workers joining.
• Trump Rx vs. Cost Plus Drugs vs. GoodRx breakdown for cheaper meds.

Jump Ahead to Listen:
[00:02:49] Joint Commission myth on drinks at nurses’ station
[00:06:02] Netflix documentary on nurse Lucy Letby
[00:08:58] 14 OB nurses resign after L&D closure in Tennessee
[00:11:59] Nurse marries during Bad Bunny Super Bowl halftime show
[00:13:28] New York City nurses strike agreement
[00:15:12] Ongoing Kaiser nurses strike in CA and HI
[00:15:51] TrumpRx, GoodRx, and Cost Plus Drugs overview

Connect with Colton on social media:
Instagram: @coltonalanlord, @club.nurse
TikTok: @nursecolton