Found Down

On today's episode, I interview Tiffany Swedeen, RN and recovery coach to talk about her experience with narcotic diversion, addiction and life in recovery. Tiffany "strives to end the stigma and shame of addiction for everyone, advocating especially for healthcare providers who struggle with substance abuse."

Tiffany shares her story with diversion and what happened to her. She never imagined that this would be her, as she identified with this image of being the “perfect ICU nurse.” It wasn't until her addiction with vicodin took over, that she found herself getting caught diverting narcotics on the job. She very candidly talks about how things were handled, what happened with her nursing license and the requirements she had to do. And yes, there is life after getting help! It get better, she says!

Tiffany has a wealth of resources for those in need on her site www.recoverandrise.com. Also, if you are looking for a support group, please check out She Recovers. If you are looking for help with addiction, Tiffany recommends SAMSA. If you are a nurse and need specific resources please check out NCSBN.org.

If you are struggling with addiction, please seek out help. You are not alone.

Stay Safe and Stay Sane,

Nicole

Today I interview nurse and attorney Irnise Williams, the woman and force behind Your Nurse Lawyer. Irnise has found her niche helping nurses, advance practice providers and professionals protect themselves and grown their businesses. She also consults with hospitals and has a slew of courses you are going to want to check out!

Irnise hosts webinars, among other courses for nurses on how to document to protect ourselves and how to mitigate malpractice. So, I brought her on to give her advice on how we should approach documentation, whether or not we should hold liability insurance and what should we do if we are called to testify in a trial. You are most certainly going to want to listen to this episode! Irnise is full of practical insights and advice.

Please go follow her on Instagram at @yournurselawyer and sign up for one of her courses!

Irnise- It was such a joy and a pleasure doing this interview!

Thank you!

Stay Safe and Stay Sane,

Nicole

Today I sit down with Cat Golden, the creator and force behind Nurses Inspire Nurses - a company that supports nurses through community, merch and events.

Get ready to be inspired! Cat speaks openly about how when she was going through a particularly challenging time she created Nurses Inspire Nurses - a concept that didn't exist before. This vision came to be when she hosted a Nurse Give Back Night and she ended up putting "Nurses Inspire Nurses" on t-shirts. The rest is history.

Trust me when I say this - you are going to want to listen to this episode. Especially, if you are feeling down, hopeless and stuck! Cat gives her wisdom on how to move through discomfort and where she derives her magic. And she offers up advice to those of us who are going through hard times right now.

Please check out Nurses Inspire Nurses! They have a free community for nurses and give 500 gifts a month to nurses in their 'Inspire a Nurse' project! Plus, they have cool merch, fun events and are giving back to the nursing community all the time!

Thank YOU Cat for all that you for US!

XOXOXO

Nicole

Today, I sit down with Amy Hamsher MSN RN CCRN CNOR(E) to talk precepting new nurses. She has been a nurse for 13 years and has experience in cardiac telemetry, the operating room, and the critical care unit. She has also worked as a nurse professional development specialist for a critical care unit and in the professional development department. Amy is currently a nursing faculty at a local college.

First of all - We both want to say a BIG thank you to all of the nurses out there that are in nursing school! We need you. Second of all, thank you to all of the preceptors out there. You know you have been precepting like crazy. So, thank you!

Amy delves into tips for preceptors when teaching new nurses such as how to find out their orientees learning styles, how to set them up for success, when to ask for help and how to know when to take a break.

We also discuss advice for new nurses! We know it is so tough right now. When you are struggling, reach out and ask for help. We want to support you. Here are a few resources Amy recommends if you need encouragement:

Lacey Magen New Nurse Mentor

Anna Rodriguez -The Burnout Book

Nurses Inspire Nurses

Preceptors - Remember the positive impact you can have on the future of nursing.

Orientees - It gets better and you got this.

Stay Safe and Stay Sane,

Nicole

Wishing you a heartfelt thank you and Happy Holidays from Found Down!

XOXOXO

Nic

This episode was recorded 12/10/21.

Today I sit back down virtually with two of my favorite women - Dr. Katrine Wallace and Christina Kim, NP. Epidemiologist Kat has a Ph.D. in epidemiology, has over 15 years of professional research and she currently is a professor at University of Illinois at Chicago. Christinaaaaaaanp is a Nurse Practitioner in outpatient oncology, with a BS in biochemistry. Both women are super active on social media promoting the truth about the Covid-19 pandemic, vaccines, their efficacy and fighting incessant misinformation.

I check in with these women to catch up, talk about how things have been and find out what we know about Omicron. The key take aways are - mitigation measures work, vaccines show effectiveness against this omicron variant, particularly if boosted.

SO, DON'T PANIC AND GET YOUR BOOSTER!

Kat & Christina - Thank you for doing your good work fighting misinformation and spreading truth all in the name of public health and humanity.

Love you ladies!!

XOXOXO

Nicole

Today I interview respiratory therapist Grace Poole about her role as an RT, how she got into it and her day to day. She gets into her amazing scope of practice and what she loves about the job. However, she does go into how the Covid-19 has changed her and the way she views her profession. Spoiler alert - it's been rough. Although, she still loves the field.

Grace uses her dark humor and insight on Tiktok and has blown up on that platform. She is very funny and candid. You should definitely follow her there @_shesaidwhat_ and on Instagram @gracesaidwhatz.

This is a pretty raw episode. Come check it out!

Stay Safe and Stay Sane,

Nicole

Today I sit down with Joanie Guy RN,MSN,JD to chat about her 30 year nursing career and her business One World Nursing where she takes nurses on fabulous international trips to have fun and earn CEUs.  Joanie is also a big nursing advocate. She has spent the last 10 years in nursing leadership roles like manager, director and interim Chief Nursing Officer positions.  And with that specialized point of view, she can see easily what isn’t working within our hospital systems.  

And with that leadership experience, Joanie offers real insight into this nursing exodus and what needs to be done.  A large part of the problem is lack of leadership from nursing leaders and hospital administration.

She also posits that at this juncture the nursing collective needs to come together to make the change we want. "Nurses own the workforce, but we just don't know it yet." We have so much power right now, we just haven't figured that out.

Come listen to an inspiring and motivating interview with Joanie Guy.

And maybe, you’ll want to go on one of her trips to the south of France!

Stay Safe and Stay Sane,

Nicole

Today I interview Christopher Pfingsten, a flight paramedic who has 15 years of experience in EMS. He shares what his role is like, the scope of his practice and the differences between being a flight paramedic and ground paramedic. He opens up about a very tough call.

Chris is also the co-host of the amazing EMS 20/20 podcast where he and his co-host Spencer Oliver review calls that area submitted by their colleagues to offer insight into what went well, what could have gone better all in the name of providing invaluable education. Go LISTEN! It is fabulous!

This is a funny and heartfelt episode. Thank you so much for being on the show, Chris! You are always welcome to come back!

Stay Safe and Stay Sane,

Nicole

On today's episode I chat with Dr. Mark Tonelli, MD, MA an Intensivist and Pulmonologist at the University of Washington Medical Center. He also is a member of their Ethics Consultation Service. I brought him on the show to discuss how he approaches ethical dilemmas in critical care medicine. The one thing that acts as a guiding light to the consultations is this desire to always want to do the right thing for the patient.

This episode is super enlightening as well as very needed. Dr. Tonelli dives into this notion of just because we can do something as medical providers, doesn't mean we should. It gets really juicy, so please tune in!

Thank you so much for being on the show, Mark. I am so appreciative and I know our listeners will be, too.

Stay Safe and Stay Sane,

Nicole