This week we have two very honorable guests to share with you. We promised them we would not tarnish their stellar reputations so they agreed. First, Ken Zinn the D.C. based Political Director for National Nurses United then retired army nurse captain, Vietnam war veteran and founder of the Women’s Vietnam Memorial, Diane Carlson Evans.

Ken talks with us about the recent announcement from the European Nations that 11 countries have signed on to a “financial transaction”tax, aka the Robin Hood Tax. The tax will raise billions of dollars by taxing financial transactions .50 per $100. Nurses in the U.S. have been on the leading edge of this concept and are making some headway here at home. Keep an open mind. If you listen to the simple details you might agree this is a very fair and doable measure. Read more...

What a wonderful find this was: Clowns Without Borders, founded in Barcelona in July 1993. The idea began when Tortell Poltrona, a professional clown in Spain, was invited to perform in a refugee camp in Croatia. This performance unexpectedly attracted audiences of more than 700 children, proving to Poltrona that there is a great need for clowns and entertainment in crisis situations. He founded Clowns Without Borders to offer humor as a means of psychological support to communities that have suffered trauma. The clowns have organizations in nine countries Spain, France, Sweden, Germany, Belgium, Ireland, South Africa, Canada and the United States. We’ll visit with RN and president of “Clowns,” Tim Cunningham. This is just a beautiful story.

AND—Flu shot controversy rages on. What do you think? You can add your 2 cents on our home page or by calling our message line at 1-800-977-1863. Nurse Talk took a Facebook poll this week and we got some very passionate answers. Read more...

AND—Flu shot controversy rages on. RN and co-president of National Nurses United, Karen Higgins joins us to discuss this “vibrant” topic. What do you think? You can add your 2 cents on our home page or by calling our message line at 1-800-977-1863. Nurse Talk took a Facebook poll this week and we got some very passionate answers. We will share this with you in the show. Very interesting—and no less interesting was a mainstream media newscast we’ll share. Fired for not getting a flu shot? One hundred and fifty at TriHealth, Cincinnati’s largest employer live to tell.

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Shayne: “Well, Casey already this year there is so much going on in the news. Of course all kinds of political issues such as the “fiscal cliff,” the looming debt ceiling, and a range of other hot topics such as—hospitals working overtime to cut staffing and increase profits, storms like we’ve never seen before, world hunger, poverty, melting of the polar ice caps, unemployment and more. BUT the one bit of news that I find most important Casey and I think you will agree—Kim Kardashian’s pregnancy.”

Casey: “Oh Shayne I couldn’t agree with you more. That poor thing has gone through so much, and now this! I’m sure she and papa-to-be, Kanye West, are ecstatic—but this will be such a public 9-months for them. First the paparazzi will be looking to get the best photos of the “baby bump,” and then they may try to catch her on a private beach in her bikini.”

And so starts some advice for Kim and papa Kanye. Read more...

Casey and Shayne’s puns might make you groan but have not doubt, laughter is the best medicine. Clowns Without Borders is a non-profit organization whose motto is No Child Without a Smile brings professional clowns to entertain in crisis areas around the world.  President and RN Tim Cunningham relays a story from Haiti that will break your heart and heal it at the same time.

You will want to listen to the whole show! Click here.

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National Nurses United, the nations largest nurses union just announced their affiliation with the National Union of Healthcare Workers. RN DeAnn McEwen, Co-President of the California Nurses Association, is here to talk about this latest step to protect patients, uphold standards, fight employer attacks, blast efforts to roll back patient ratios, and erode contract protections. McEwen says, “We work for better living conditions and human rights for everybody…not just for ourselves, and NUHW is a natural ally.”

And, Kira Reginato is president of Living Ideas For Elders, an eldercare management firm. And boy do we need her advice. Kira takes a call from a caller who is burned out taking care of her father in her home. Dad won’t consider other options…what can be done? Read more...

Shayne and Casey welcome RN and Co-President of National Nurses United, Deborah Burger. Deborah is a frequent guest on Nurse Talk. She recently wrote an article about the need to restore our mental health system. In the wake of the tragic shooting in Connecticut and gun violence at an all time high in our country—many questions are left unanswered. Most of us agree that guns are a huge problem and laws to restrict automatic and semi-automatic weapons must be passed and enforced. But that alone is not sufficient, we must look at and restore access to mental health services and continue to work towards universal healthcare for all.

And related to the tragedy in Connecticut we wanted to share something with our listeners that we find to be a beautiful tribute to the souls who were lost that day. It’s a song written by up and coming songwriter Alex Hobbs (who does happen to be Casey’s nephew). Read more...

A visit with RN DeAnn McEwen, , Co-President of the California Nurses Association, about a recent press release announcing the largest nurses union in the U.S., National Nurses United and its affiliation with the National Union of Healthcare Workers to step up their work to protect patients, uphold standards, fight employer attacks, blast efforts to roll back patient ratios, and erode contract protections. Find out why and why you should be interested. Read more...

Shayne and Casey welcome RN and Co-President of National Nurses United, Deborah Burger. Deborah is a frequent guest on Nurse Talk. She recently wrote an article about the need to restore our mental health system. In the wake of the tragic shooting in Connecticut and gun violence at an all time high in our country—many questions are left unanswered. Most of us agree that guns are a huge problem and laws to restrict automatic and semi-automatic weapons must be passed and enforced. But that alone is not sufficient, we must look at and restore access to mental health services and continue to work towards universal healthcare for all. Read more...

Nurses around the country mourn the loss of life marked by the shooting of innocents in Connecticut. Every day a massive tragedy is being played out on a smaller scale in emergency rooms, in mental health facilities and on the street across our country where, with sometimes devastating consequences, mental health is underfunded to a shocking and sometimes deadly degree.

Casey and Shayne speak with RN Deborah Burger who says we must insist private health insurance systems reverse pervasive cuts to mental health services. Why does someone have to cause physical harm in order for an intervention to take place? Are all of the children, responders and families who have been scarred in Newtown going to get the mental health services they need?

Listen to the whole show. Read more...