Comedian Nurse Blake will be performing at Shippensburg University on November 22. Blake Lynch is a nurse, creator, advocate, viral sensation, and touring comedian.

Being born into a medical family, he followed suit by joining the healthcare field.

“My dad is a respiratory therapist. He's been a respiratory therapist for over 30 years. And my mom is medical device sales. And so, I had no other choice that night. Like that was my only option. I didn't consider anything else.”

His nursing journey includes roles in Surgical ICU, Live Transplant, Pulmonary Step Down, Injury Prevention, and Care Coordination. He realized he was funny when dealing with a patient while he was at work.

“I had a patient. I was telling her a joke and she went on, had a full asthma attack. And I'm like, You know what? I'm funny. Like, I'm funny. She was okay, by the way. She was fine.”

Being a comedian was never something Blake set out to do. Through comedy, he advocates for better working conditions for healthcare professionals.

“Being understaffed contributes to a lot of burnout. And nurses and nurses leave the profession at really, really high rates even after only a few years of being a nurse. Nurses also work, like I said, 12-hour shifts, right? We don't get lunches necessarily. We don't get breaks, but we still have to clock out for them. So, it looks like we got a break or a lunch. So, a lot of times, you know, your health care workers are working extended periods of time without going to the bathroom or without eating. And it just becomes really unsafe. And our health care in America is so expensive to other countries, you would think we would be able to provide, you know, higher quality care.”

Blake also insists those not in the medical field can enjoy his show as well. By telling his story, he believes anyone can relate to his experiences.

“I hope they realize that as nurses or people too, we have feelings and emotions. And if a health care worker is watching my video, I hope you feel less alone because it is a really, really hard job. And I hope that you watch the video and read the comments and realize that you're not the only one going through it. There's other people that can relate to you.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

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