In this episode, Dr. Maureen Vidrine, a Certified Clinical Specialist (CNS) in Psychiatry talks about her education, her innovation in the field of psychiatric nursing. She thinks outside of the box and finds many different avenues to educate others about psychiatry. She uses her skills to improve the lives of her nursing students, her patients and clients. Learn from Dr. Vidrine as she shares her experiences as a Nurse Clinician and educator. Even in her busy schedule, she finds the time to give back in the community. She uses her talents in her non-profit organization, Horse Time by devoting to “facilitate horse and human interactions in a context of wellness for the purposes of healing and growth.”

The recent report by the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at the California State University in San Bernardino Asian hate crimes have increased by 150% during the Covid 19 pandemic. According to AAPI or the Asian American Pacific Islander national report, 3,795 incidents of hate crimes with verbal harassment, physical assault, civil rights violations, This number is only a fraction of what Asians are experiencing, Many hate crimes are under-reported. In this episode, you can learn what you can do to Stop Asian Hate. Use the Bystander Intervention of the 5 Ds. Distract, Delegate, Document, Delay and Direct. Thank you.

Nurse Practitioners are making impact in their communities by utilizing innovation in healthcare and business. NP’s are finding their niche in the communities they live in. Professional satisfaction and a growth mindset has a lot to do with those who are driven to start their own business. Dr. Patrice Little, FNP and CEO of NP Student and “cultivates student’s thinking.” She also uses an online platform, NP Student University and connects NP students to resources for developing their leadership skills, advanced assessment and diagnosis and empowering NP students in cultural competencies.

On this podcast, Abbigail Abraham will share with us her expertise on how she approaches a patient who is in crisis in the emergency department. She brings to light the connection of the mind, body and spirit. She has seen that you can patch up the medical issue but as a mental health advocate, she has to dig deep to the issues that caused the crisis. She shares with us her techniques on Motivational Interviewing. She educates us the importance of assisting her patients on how they can find their own strengths, assess their readiness for change, and use their personal tool box to find resiliency in life.

According the the APA, trauma is an emotional response to a terrible event like a natural disaster, death of a loved one, mass shootings, accidents, sexual assault or from combat. The brain goes through changes due to exposure to trauma. It is important that you know about the Adverse Childhood Experiences study and its consequences. You as the Nurse Practitioner Need to tap into your patients strengths and skills to increase their positive outcomes.

Nurses, Nurse Practitioners and those who work in healthcare may be at risk to compassion fatigue. Compassion fatigue are the physical, emotional and spiritual distress that you may feel from one exposure from a traumatic case or a cumulative effect from several cases. It is important to learn how to say no, have boundaries and self care routine to combat compassion fatigue.

According to the CDC, 128 people die everyday from an opioid overdose. Currently, there are 1.6 million people who have Opioid Use Disorder. Opioids are natural or synthetic chemicals that relieve pain. Opioids are highly addicting medications that can lead to physical dependence within 4-6 weeks. The Opioid Epidemic affects not only the patient but families and children as well. You as the Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner have to education your patient on medication assisted treatment, behavioral therapy, family therapy and provide them with resources within the community

Cultural Psychiatry is a thorough understanding of the patient population that we treat. We treat patients from a culturally diverse populations from refugees, migrant workers, LGBTQ, immigrants and indigenous people. It emphasizes that we as Clinicians, are aware of where are patients are coming from when it comes to mental health. We need to have a better understanding of Culture-Bound Syndromes and look at the patients symptoms from their perspective. As a Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner, we need to be aware of the inequities that they face. We need to have the understanding that of what health care disparities are. We have to engage with our patients at a deeper level so that we may be their advocate and their voice so they may have positive mental health outcomes in the culture they live in.

This episode is a heartfelt deep conversations from the perspective of Dr. Arielle Banks, an African-American Family Nurse Practitioner as she shares her experiences as a provider. She treats her patients medically but also looks at the patient holistically. Through her experiences and education, she is aware of the mental health toll that affects many and especially Black and Latino population. She addresses the healthcare disparities that has been going on for years but is now concretely seen during this Covid-19 pandemic. Research shows that people of color have higher rates of morbidity and mortality. She reinforces the importance of team effort in healthcare to improve lives of her patients no matter what ethnic background they come from. She shares with us her future goals as a DNP and how she can make changes in the lives of her patients.

Ms. Brennan Warren, BSN, CRRT shares the rollercoaster of emotions that many nurses and those who work in healthcare go through during this Covid-19 pandemic. She is saddened about the heartbreaking loneliness that her patients go through during their hospitalization. She says the key is the importance of working together with the Rapid Response Team during Code Blue which is extremely important during the “organized chaos” to help a patient. She talks about her resiliency by using her spirituality during challenging shifts. She decompresses by being mindful of the quality time with her family! She is very grateful for the hugs and love she receives from them. Thank you!