The Pulse Check Podcast

Sit down with Mandy and HeHe as they celebrate the end of their first season of the Pulse Check Podcast! Stay to the end to hear all their thoughts and feelings about Season 1 AND get a sneak peak at whats in store for Season 2. Before they leave you for 2022, Many and HeHe are diving into Patient Code of Conduct as a Boston Hospital recently publicly released theirs. What does this look like? Is it just for show? How would this need to be supported and reinforced for actual change to transpire? If you were a healthcare working during the pandemic, this may be sensitive to listen to as we discuss staff abuse at the hands of patients. Feel free to fast forward to the end to hear all about our next season ahead!  

Mandy and HeHe sit down to speak with guest, Amanda, a Nurse and IBCLC.  Amanda shares with us today her story of violence in the workplace.  Sharing a multilayered story of advocacy, injustice, blurring of boundaries, and the bottom lines ruling hospital hierarchy. 

Today HeHe and Mandy sit down with Nurse Melissa, who originally intended to share her story anonymously.  After some consideration, she decided to share her identity and shift her share into a story about nursing.  Combining a history of 15 years of nursing details and crafting one powerful (and at some points hard to hear) story about patient advocacy in the birth room.   This story may resonate deeply with you, because her story is all of ours.  Whether you have been that nurse, on that medical team, a birthing human, or a support person.  And this story needs to be heard.  Melissa's share does include topics like birth trauma, medical manipulation, abusive power relationships in the workplace - so if you need to listen at another time, pause, or fast forward- we encourage you to do what is right for you.    ⭐️ If you enjoyed this podcast, we'd be so grateful for a 5 star review! We love the love!   ⭐️ If you have a question or comment but can't commit to recording a show, we now have a recording line! Leave us a message here: https://mandyirby.com/pulse-check-podcast/

Mandy sits down to chat with Nurse Adriane RN, Owner of Trusted Guardian Patient Advocates.  Another look inside how creative nurses are paving their own path toward happiness - we meet Nurse Adriane this week! She's a board certified patient advocate, and she's using her experience and expertise to provide supportive, patient care outside of Big Medicine. You've got to hear about her new career path. We're probably all going to need her services in our future.   You can follow Nurse Adriane RN https://www.tiktok.com/@nurseadrianern https://www.nurseadrianern.com/   ⭐️ As you enjoy this podcast, we'd be so grateful for a 5 star review! We love the love! ⭐️ If you have a question or comment but can't commit to recording a show, we now have a recording line! Leave us a message here: https://mandyirby.com/pulse-check-podcast/

Over half the public are in favor of having choice over pregnancy and not having strict abortion bans. 44% of abortion trainees lost their training in their state   Resources: https://www.ansirh.org/research/ongoing/turnaway-study Aidcaccess.org abortion funds.org Turnaway study Goodmocker inst. Jessica velinti Abortion access front reproaction.org   Let us know your thoughts in the comments or on our IG: @pulsecheck.podcast   Follow along with Melissa: Follow Melissa on TikTok: @melonmedicine   ⭐️ As you enjoy this podcast, we'd be so grateful for a 5 star review! We love the love! ⭐️ If you have a question or comment but can't commit to recording a show, we now have a recording line! Leave us a message here: https://mandyirby.com/pulse-check-podcast/ If this podcast got you thinking in all the creative ways, we'd really appreciate it if you told us in a 5 star review! Reviews help us reach other listeners on our journey to improve healthcare through story. Thank you!

Self Empowerment and Healing Ourselves with Nurse Missy What would love do? That's what our guest today has us asking ourselves now! We invited Nurse Missy onto the podcast, and we had no agenda. You'll love where the mood takes us, from how do people heal themselves? We talk a bit about stress as a spiritual affliction - we did not anticipate that! And we even get a few history lessons on Jesus and bible stories, which were surprisingly well-timed, especially for the non-religious.  HeHe and Mandy both felt like Missy's message was meant for us this week, and we are curious if you feel the same way after listening. Let us know your thoughts in the comments or on our IG: @pulsecheck.podcast   Nurse Missy, RN, Soul Coach, Hope Influencer Follow Nurse Missy on TikTok: @thatnursemissy Her website for more info Missy's podcast on forgiveness ⭐️ As you enjoy this podcast, we'd be so grateful for a 5 star review! We love the love! ⭐️ If you have a question or comment but can't commit to recording a show, we now have a recording line! Leave us a message here: https://mandyirby.com/pulse-check-podcast/ Trauma-Informed Birth Nurse Program mentioned in video: www.traumainformedbirthnurse.com If this podcast got you thinking in all the creative ways, we'd really appreciate it if you told us in a 5 star review! Reviews help us reach other listeners on our journey to improve healthcare through story. Thank you!

Nurse Arrested After Video of Woman Giving Birth Reportedly Shared on Snapchat: HIPAA Rules and Healthcare Professionals on Social Media HeHe and Mandy are discussing the active criminal case against nurse Rachel Fastow, of Macon, Georgia. We don't even need all the details of this case to know that it's a warning to other healthcare professionals. We also consider who should regulate social media accounts of healthcare professionals? Is it a good idea to have a personal account not linked to your facility? Let us know your thoughts in the comments or on our IG: @pulsecheck.podcast HIPAA Security Rules: https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/for-professionals/security/laws-regulations/index.html News article about Macon hospital nurse arrest: https://www.macon.com/news/local/crime/article266181326.html   ⭐️ As you enjoy this podcast, we'd be so grateful for a 5 star review! We love the love! ⭐️ If you have a question or comment but can't commit to record a show, we now have a recording line! Leave us a message here: https://mandyirby.com/pulse-check-podcast/

Functional Medicine: Using Nursing Fundamentals to Become True Healers Today we have guest with us who finally found a way to be healer and advocate while helping her patients empower themselves toward wellness. Brigitte Sager shares her journey from critical care nurse to becoming a “manager of disease;” the more she learned, the more frustrated in her job she became.  Now, as a nurse coach and in her functional medicine consulting practice, she is teaching new nurses in the field that you don't have to suffer to care for others! Brigitte shares about the role that functional medicine can play in professional burnout and answers some of her students' most-asked questions. We're grateful for her time and experience with us, thank you Brigitte! Functional medicine feels parallel to Trauma-Informed Nursing Care: Brigitte writes in a blog: “[FM] content was material I had learned in nursing school, but they are topics that are rarely given any priority in modern healthcare.” Resources Brigitte recommends: https://blog.inursecoach.com/functional-medicine-nurse-coaching-perfect-partnership https://blog.inursecoach.com/functional-medicine-the-art-of-healing-for-nurses Find someone like Brigitte in your area at IFM.org New Classes in Oct and Jan: www.FM4N.com Her podcast: https://inursecoach.com/podcast/ep30-functional-medicine-for-nurses/ Trauma-Informed Birth Nurse Program: https://mandyirby.com/trauma-informed-birth-nurse-program/

Today's guest is Hilary Erickson from Pulling Curls and Pregnancy Nurse to talk about feeling her feelings as a bedside nurse as a case study for secondary traumatic stress in labor and delivery nurses. We're so grateful to her for being candid with us as she shares about her intense anxiety before her shift - even starting the night before. Hilary shares that even in nursing school she believes that nurses are taught to blame themselves for everything that goes wrong, which can create some misplaced responsibility, for sure. We also discuss: impacts of modern medical model of care on patient safety and nurse mental health how hospitals protect themselves at the expense and to the detriment of their nurses/physicians The role nurse culture plays in perpetuating nurse disempowerment and unhealthy habits Curiosity around what traumatic stress looks like in different scenarios, including birth in a car! You can find Hilary on her blog: https://www.pullingcurls.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pregnancynurse/

Ever felt so ready for a career change that it feels like the next frustration or backwards new policy might just put you over the edge to changing jobs? That's exactly what this week's guest did after just 3 months at her nursing job! Bridget Burke was motivated by frustration - a lousy orientation, retaliation for safety-reporting, and the pettiness and bullying was obvious from day one. She knew she wouldn't thrive as a nurse in that environment. A few timely coincidences later, she's now part of a tech startup and passionately advocating for nursing innovation that benefits nurses! You'll love meeting Bridget just as much as we did. It might even inspire you to pursue other fields, like tech, that need your expertise! NurseWallet: Money app for nurses. Personal finance tool. Shift planner. Plan your finances with an investment feature. Understand your paycheck and let your money work for you. Follow on Tiktok   Nursing innovation - Rebecca Love ted talk on youtubeFollow Bridget: https://www.tiktok.com/@bridgetbrn

This week, our guest, Madi, shares examples about what she calls, “a toxic work environment,” that I bet you can relate to, too. She tells us how she tried to improve conditions for her and her fellow nurse colleagues, and then shares the heartbreaking story of the last straw before leaving the job she loved. She's about to begin a new job next week, and you might be surprised to hear what she's doing now with her nursing license!

There are so many red flag practices taught in medical school that are even obvious from the outside looking in. It seems as if the culture of becoming a medical professional teaches out a bit of moral integrity. How does this ultimately impact unit culture and team culture; and how does it impact patient treatment down the line? Mandy and HeHe have not been through medical school or residency, and we'll share examples with you of what we've witnessed and why we're curious about their mistreatment. Articles mentioned: Article about medical gaslighting that is helpful  https://www.cfp.ca/content/67/5/367.short 
 Prevalence of Discrimination, Abuse, and Harassment in Emergency Medicine Residency Training in the US; https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/article-abstract/2783236 Of 7680 emergency medicine residents, 45.1% reported exposure to some type of workplace mistreatment. Joel Bervell: Online, Joel is better known as the '‘Medical Mythbuster.” http://joelbervell.com/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5109754/

When Nurse Whistleblowers Then File Retaliation Claims Have you ever felt like your job might be on the line for doing the right thing? Our guests today are two nurses who were fired for advocating for patient safety. Hear about how they fight back against a facility with a track record of systemic retaliation, and their advice on how to stay safe as a professional in healthcare and how to learn more on navigating a whistleblower situation in the future. Sarah encourages fellow nurses to keep speaking up, continue to support each other when other speak up about safety and patient care, and look into unionization if your facility is not already unionized. You can find the video and transcripts of all episodes here: https://mandyirby.com/pulse-check-podcast/ Marian's story in NBC news: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/health-care-workers-say-fired-raising-safety-concerns-rcna14710 Nurses accuse PeaceHealth of retaliation after raising safety concerns: https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/hr/nurses-accuse-peacehealth-of-retaliation-after-raising-safety-concerns.html An ER Doctor Lost His Job After Criticizing His Hospital On COVID-19. Now He's Suing: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/05/29/865042307/an-er-doctor-lost-his-job-after-criticizing-his-hospital-on-covid-19-now-hes-sui

How does post-Roe v. Wade impact the care that healthcare professionals can give? This week we discuss how the reproductive healthcare landscape is changing before our eyes after just a couple months post Roe v. Wade being overturned.  You can find the video and transcripts of all episodes here: https://mandyirby.com/pulse-check-podcast/ https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2022/08/10/1116024857/young-obgyns-indiana Dr. Caitlin Bernard, an Indiana abortion provider and one of the physicians who trains residents at this university hospital. Bernard was recently caught in a political whirlwind after she spoke to a reporter about an abortion she provided to a 10-year-old rape victim who crossed the state line from Ohio. https://www.wfyi.org/news/articles/indiana-doctor-takes-step-towards-defamation-lawsuit-against-rokita Providers in VA are in federal court to end unconstitutional laws criminalizing certain abortion care and regulating abortion providers.
 https://acluva.org/en/news/heres-what-you-need-know-about-abortion-restrictions-virginia Sites we love: Abortion Access Front: https://www.aafront.org/ Three for freedom: https://www.threeforfreedom.com Favor: https://heyfavor.com

Mandy speaks at her first nursing conference since leaving the bedside and we are sharing all of the feelings and thoughts on it in this episode of Pulse Check! If you are a nurse, educator, or considering leaving the bedside- you don't want to miss this!

On HeHe's TikTok, a nurse comment on a video explaining patient rights and their right to informed refusal saying, "That's fine. I will just document in your chart that you refused care and we'll see how things happen from there." Whether a patient declines or accepts your clinical suggestion shouldn't dictate how they are treated in the medical system, but HERE WE ARE. This episode covers everything from threatening language and manipulation of patients to consensual and trauma informed care. We packed a ton into this conversation! Follow along with us: @pulsecheck.podcast

No guest today! Mandy and HeHe dive into evaluating trauma informed care as Mandy shares her recent experience within the medical system.  Navigating a new office, provider, and opening up about a problem that has been ongoing and difficult for Mandy to seek care for.  HeHe and Mandy break down the positives and areas of growth seen in this experience through the eyes of a patient.

HeHe's great idea to solve the broken healthcare system in America? A Listserve. It takes years (and years and years) to see research backed change actually implemented in the medical system, but WHY? With all of the technology, resources, and money in the American Health Care system there has to be a better way.  Join us as we chat through policy change, standards of health care, AND everyone's least favorite task...checking your email.   We want to know your thoughts! Share them with us @pulsecheck.podcast

One might expect that a term used frequently across many medical settings would have a universal definition.  However, through our experiences as a nurse and doula - we have seen the struggle to define what it means to be a patient advocate as a nurse.  We share our thoughts today- and would love to hear yours! Connect with us! @pulsecheck.podcast

Opening up the conversation on why Nurse's week (or really any profession with a dedicated 'week' or 'day') is BS.  What started as a joke between HeHe and Mandy quickly jumped to the dark reality behind these 'acts' of gratitude within the industry.  We want to hear your thoughts! Get in touch.  Instagram: @pulsecheck.podcast

National Nurses March will be marching in Washington D.C. in a an effort to promote change nationally for nurses for the following: Fair wages, Safe Staffing Nurse Patient Ratios, and no violence or discrimination against healthcare workers. https://nationalnursesmarch.org/

@Dr.MartaPerez  >>  Dr. Marta Perez   Online Abortion Access:  https://www.heyjane.co https://www.plancpills.org

This episode is a discussion on the evolving language in medicine and the heavy lifting that is required by consumers of medical care just to understand what everyone is talking about! We've noticed a difference in language spoken between colleagues vs spoken to patients and differences in the outpatient setting, in-patient setting, and even social media. HeHe and Mandy sit down with Dr. Chrissy Sheeler, family practice physician in Canada, to share an interesting conversation we had in IG DMs that we wanted to continue - so we hit record! You get to listen in on this conversation, and Dr. Sheeler drops some awesome changes in language that you can start making to be more trauma-aware in your care, too. Here are some great TIC resources below. They are geared towards physicians, but are applicable to everyone. The link to The National Council Curbside Consult has a fantastic chart that Dr. Sheeler actually printed out and has in her office that details TIC actions.   https://www.aafp.org/afp/2017/0515/p655.html https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Trauma_Informed_Care_in_PC_Settings_Curbside_Consultation_VL.pdf https://thecurbsiders.com/podcast/218 https://www.cfp.ca/content/64/3/170 www.traumainformedbirthnurse.com https://www.feministmidwife.com/

If you're reeling after hearing the Radonda Vaught verdict this week, you're not alone. Mandy and HeHe discuss the verdict and give our own predictions for how this will affect healthcare in the future.  We ask, “did her incident report cause her to possibly go to jail?” We also review the med error numbers in the U.S. and what's the advice that's being given to nurses right now about reporting errors. What are the reports for? How do the benefit patients? Join us this week as we share our opinions and perspectives (we're not sharing professional advice, medical advice, or legal advice on this episode or any on our podcast). We'd love to hear how you're feeling and if your practice will change after this week's trial. Reach out @pulsecheck.podcast or fill out the form here to be a guest!   Episodes we mentioned: Nurse Sibyl: here! Episode 5, Moral Injury: here!   Folks to follow: @yournurselawyer    @the.nurse.erica   @nursenander   Links: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2022/03/25/1088902487/former-nurse-found-guilty-in-accidental-injection-death-of-75-year-old-patient https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/critical-thinking-health/medical-error-not-third-leading-cause-death https://www.nursingworld.org/news/news-releases/2022-news-releases/american-nurses-association-responds-to-the-trial-of-nurse-radonda-vaught/   https://ewscripps.brightspotcdn.com/3d/46/feb995d34e9782f9ae33e37391c0/0716-001.pdf   https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28186008/   https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/critical-thinking-health/medical-error-not-third-leading-cause-death

Even if it doesn't feel like a massive responsibility, being a healthcare professional on the internet means something to consumers. This week we're discussing a recent encounter Mandy had with a physician on Instagram, and it led to a lot of great lessons! This person was talking about their personal feelings, their personal experiences, but they definitely carried some weight, because she was “Dr.” on her profile.  It's probably due to consumer bias, but consumers of social media assume you know more than they do about a topic when you share about it. Even if it's just a personal opinion or anecdote! Yikes! It's new to us to have so much access to so many healthcare professionals, so it's understandable that it will take some time for all of us to learn how to navigate healthcare content on social media. It's interesting to watch it evolve. Do you follow some favorite healthcare pros on Tik Tok or Instagram? Ever find yourself buying their recommendation or reading the books they're reading? Interesting, huh?! Medical influencers - there are for sure pros and cons to these online relationships!

Our guest today is a systems nurse, and we definitely had to ask “what's that?!” Find out how Claire flips the script on the “broken nursing system” and what she, has a change maker and systems thinker says about what to do when nurses hands are tied — or are they? She gives some must-hear advice for new grads and even some actionable steps we can all start taking immediately to improve the healthcare system for our whole community. If you're feeling a bit overwhelmed, she's talking to you! Thank you, Claire, for your time and perspective on today's podcast! Find Claire Phillips on the ‘gram @nursing.the.system And we'll also be stalking her site for her new career development course coming soon (Interview with Intention) at www.nursingthesystem.com. We can't wait to learn more about her Changemaker Pyramid, too! While you're on IG, don't forget to follow us @pulsecheck.podcast

The phrases and the tone that healthcare professionals use is probably routine, just another day at work. But today we want to talk about what it's like on the other side of this medical jargon and routine language. HeHe shares a story about recent language used with one of her clients in the hospital suddenly turned scary.  Share your fav quotes from a recent episode on Instagram from our page: www.instagram.com/pulsecheck.podcast If you have a story you'd like to share with us about your experience inside the halls of US healthcare, send us some info here: https://forms.gle/t5RE3a8t8PhLJc7U9

Recently, a hospital system showed their true colors when they put a restraining order on seven previous employees from taking a better job offer across town. That's right, instead of a stellar counter offer to the stroke care team, the hospital system took them to court and blamed the staff for limiting the community's access to critical medical care.  Even if you're not part of this 7-person stroke team and you're not affected by this court hearing in Wisconsin, this legal battle is important to hear about. It's a very clear example of the lengths the healthcare facilities in the U.S. will go to underpay and undervalue some of their most talented staff. It may just be rounding down your clock-out time on your time card or auto-deducting your lunch break, but this lawsuit is an example of hospital facilities flexing their perceived ownership of their employees.  Healthcare employers don't have our best interests in mind. Healthcare professionals need to have confidence in our value.  HeHe makes a great point in this week's episode:  “You deserve to be treated with respect and dignity and have your boundaries respected that you have set with your employer and that you have set for your time off of work. So if those are constantly being violated, reevaluate, whether your place of employment actually values you or do they actually just view you as another warm body on the floor?" Here's the article we reference in the podcast: https://www.fiercehealthcare.com/hospitals/thedacare-ascension-judge-lifts-block-preventing-former-thedacare-employees-from-starting

Today we're joined by special guest, Nurse Allie, a hospice nurse who's passionate about what hospice nursing is really like. She believes that new grad nurse residency programs should be commonplace and readily available to nurses all over the country! She also has some great tips for anyone curious about the hospice field.  On this episode of Pulse Check Podcast, we get to ask Allie:  How did she get started with hospice nursing? What do you recommend is the first step for someone who wants experience as a hospice nurse? Where do you pee when you're doing home visits? What are some things that make your job difficult or easier outside of the hospital? Is hospice nursing just about morphine drips and hand massages? And so much more! Thank you, Nurse Allie, for your candid conversation and passion for end of life care. We've loved getting a peek into why you're so passionate about your job and your patients. If you have a story or want to share about your corner of healthcare, drop us a line here! We love to help bring humanity back to healthcare.   Follow along with Nurse Allie: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nurse.allie Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nurse_allie Nurse Penny - another hospice nurse to follow: https://www.instagram.com/itsnursepenny/

Let's talk about the proposed “nurse pay cap” and what that would mean for the healthcare industry. This topic can be quite controversial, but there are a few takeaways: All consumers that are able can contact your local representatives to let them know how you feel about legislation, advocate for competitive nurse pay. Also, what you hear in the news and on social media is rarely ever the whole story.    This week it's about hospitals accusing travel nurse agencies of bleeding them of all of their money so that they can stay in business. For the last 2 years hospitals have complained that supply shortages are to blame. Covid is to blame for too many sick patients; hospitals can't keep up. In years past it's been that revenues are down, costs keep rising, insurance payouts are low, it's allllways something.    Are travel nurses agencies Really getting paid billions of dollars?    It's an interesting topic and we'll keep discussing it as it revolves in the next few weeks and moths!   Read the letter and signees here: https://morgangriffith.house.gov/uploadedfiles/wh_nurse_staffing.pdf Find your state representative and let them know you don't support this letter: https://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative   Here's where the ANA stands with nurses: https://www.nursingworld.org/news/news-releases/2021/ana-calls-on-congress-and-the-administration-to--investigate-and-mitigate-the-root-causes-of-nurse-shortages/ If you're in L&D, check out www.traumainformedbirthnurse.com for trauma-informed care training from over 15 educators and experts plus Live online support by a trauma therapist. As always, you can follow along with us on Instagram at: @pulsecheck.podcast

This week, Hehe and Mandy get into travel nursing with Nurse Sibyl! She shares her travel experiences on social media, but we had some meaty questions for her about what it's really like. Plus, Sibyl gives us her take on how to have the best travel nurse experience no matter how toxic or unpleasant the hosting unit is. This is advice you can implement now, no matter what kind of nursing you're in! Stick around for the lightening round at the end. She gives some awesome tips for costs associated with traveling that she didn't realize existed before she left her staff unit. Some questions we get to ask her in this week's podcast treat: How and why did you get into travel nursing? How do you manage new relationships and unit cultures so frequently? How is she treated as a traveler? Do staff nurses resent travel nurses? Freedom - is that a benefit of travel nursing?    Find her here: TikTok @sibsrn  Instagram: @sybilstephania 

When you are in a healthcare system - language is powerful. HeHe and Mandy dive into the importance of language: things that are said to patients, what is said around patients in the room, not correctly addressing someone by their choice of pronouns, etc. Join us as we discuss this timely topic and how it pertains to the health and safety of patients and workers within the health care system. It's tough to vent our feelings and process an event but also balance a presence and therapeutic relationship with our patients.  In this episode, we discuss some tips and tricks for using language and transparency to center the patient and deflect a pushy colleague.  If you're in L&D, check out www.traumainformedbirthnurse.com for trauma-informed care training from over 15 educators and experts plus Live online support by a trauma therapist. As always, you can follow along with us on Instagram at: @pulsecheck.podcast

Links: OB violence map: here Irthapp.com https://www.jointcommission.org/resources/patient-safety-topics/report-a-patient-safety-concern-or-complaint/ ANA code of ethics: https://www.nursingworld.org/practice-policy/nursing-excellence/ethics/code-of-ethics-for-nurses/coe-view-only/ OSHA complaint: https://www.nursingworld.org/~49c45e/globalassets/practiceandpolicy/work-environment/health--safety/osha-complaint-fact-sheet-20190530.pdf Medical board by state:  https://birthmonopoly.com/find-your-state-board/ Birthxapp.com : BirthX is a crowd-sourced review platform to read and write reviews on your childbirth experience with your healthcare provider. Steps to report: https://birthmonopoly.com/how-to-file-a-complaint-for-mistreatment-in-birth-or-obstetric-violence/   How to file a complaint as a consumer:  Write down your story as soon as possible— a stream of consciousness— if you can record it on video or voice recording is even better as it capture the true thoughts without the hindrance of having to write it down Think about the scope of the complaint—was this an ongoing issue or a one time offense? Was it an overall safety concern or one incident/person? Is this a system issue or specific to your situation? Provide them with feedback as to how they can improve to avoid this in the future. Research your hospital's process for reporting complaints. There is usually a “patient advocacy' or ‘patient relations' department that handles all complaints. Making sure your complaint gets into the right hands is crucial. If it lands in the wrong inbox, there will be no forward progress because they won't be able to do anything about it. DO NOT FILE YET! Obtain your medical records and operative reports Report to your states medical board: https://www.fsmb.org/contact-a-state-medical-board/ File a report with the Joint Commission (manage patient safety concerns): https://apps.jointcommission.org/QMSInternet/IncidentEntry.aspx?_ga=2.33659361.1333699656.1546967936-996439568.1546967936 If you need to edit your complaint, do so here: https://apps.jointcommission.org/QMSInternet/IncidentUpdate.aspx?_ga=2.33659361.1333699656.1546967936-996439568.1546967936 Their priority is patient safety so coercive care, abusive providers, and failure to gain consent is very important to them and will be investigated.  Visit https://mypatientrights.org/file-a-complaint/ and file a complaint If you are a POC and/or your provider is a person of color, visit BirthXapp.com and file a complaint If this was a OBGYN or midwife (reproductive health providers), report to the Birth Monopoly Map: https://birthmonopoly.com/obstetric-violence/ File with your state's health dept—it'll vary state by state Now file with your hospital    Steps to file a complaint as a healthcare employee: Always be working on your “other options” so you never feel stuck or required to stay in a certain job Know your responsibility within your license to report unsafe behavior or abusive employees Write your story ASAP, because trauma can affect your memory of it. Don't tie identifying patient info to the story. This quick story could be emailed to your superior, if appropriate, as a placeholder for a discussion about it in the future.  Report to your employer if appropriate, they may ask for identifying pt info. These are often not anonymous. Report to the state board (state board of medicine or nursing), if appropriate, they may ask for identifying pt info, too You may want to report to the state Department of Health. They receive complaints of healthcare practitioners who may have violated a regulation or law, and complaints can often be anonymous, also. When safety and health standards are violated, you may consider exercising your right to file a complaint with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) within the U.S. Department of Labor. If it's not safe to do your job, it's impossible to provide high-quality healthcare. The Joint Commission - you may file a complaint here if it involves a patient safety concern or event. You may file anonymously here if you wish. Go public with that shit! - Just keep off the patient identifying info (and provider identifying if you'll be connected with the report and still employed at that same location. See next step). Options for perinatal healthcare: birthxapp, irth app, birth monopoly obstetric violence map.

Strike Breakers    The ethics, the morals, the emotions, and the dangers!! When big health systems go on strike, there is guaranteed to be a mob of angry nurses behind it. Nurses who take on travel roles and fill positions to help the system stay afloat are doing so at the expense of the striking nurses! Mandy and HeHe discuss the nitty gritty details of nursing strikes, union negations and the power of numbers!     Connect with us on @pulsecheck.podcast

Healthcare, technology, and science is changing so fast, these days, it's no surprise that professionals can easily be left behind and out of touch if you're not constantly learning in your career. In this Episode, HeHe and Mandy share a few stories of how “I've been a nurse for 30 years” doesn't mean what it used to in healthcare or nursing culture. We'll also discuss a new program that labor and delivery nurses can take advantage of if you're looking to level-up your nursing care. Yes, it's possible to practice in a way that's aligned with your values inside a hospital system, but it takes some trauma-informed care training, specifically from other nurses.    Trauma-Informed Birth Nurse Program: join the next cohort today!

Amy, an OB nurse whose patient was in the ICU, bravely shares her story about an earth shattering event in her nursing career that caused her traumatic stress and panic attacks. She details how this event affected her day-to-day work life, here career, and how she navigated the very limited support she received from her employer to begin to work through her trauma, heal, and courageously how she's helping other nurses do the same. There are some amazing and practical nuggets of info in this episode that can benefit every single healthcare professional. Amy is teaching about trauma bandaids and what we can do as professionals when our usual tools for coping fail (and our employers fail to support our mental health.)   You can follow along with Amy: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/redstarnurses/ Website: https://redstarnurse.com/

Mandy and HeHe sit down and interview Alexis Commodore, founder of Birth X.  Alexis is a Certified Pediatric Emergency Nurse and Birth Doula.  Birth X is a platform for birthing people to read and write reviews of their childbirth experience with their healthcare provider.  Come along with us as Alexis vulnerably shares about her personal and professional experiences with racial biases in the health care system that pushed her to walk away from the bedside.    Follow along with Alexis: www.birthxapp.com @birthxapp on Instagram

This shift in perspective is a story you don't want to miss. Meet Ima, a new grad and ... COVID charge nurse! Yeah, she's both, and she's ready to tell us what happened last year and some huge perspective shifts and troubling realizations about healthcare. This episode might be a tough one for you if you're still working on the “front lines” of this Delta surge as it includes specific details of what it's like for healthcare professionals and patients inside the COVID ICUs. If you were in healthcare in 2020 or 2021, we urge you to find crucial, life-saving mental health care that you deserve. https://thriveworks.com/ www.betterhelp.com www.talkspace.com

https://www.usa.edu/blog/nursing-shortage/ https://health.ucdavis.edu/nurse/magnet/faq.html https://www.snhu.edu/about-us/newsroom/2019/01/what-is-a-magnet-hospital

Whoa, folks, this episode is a full on heated rant about some of the retention tactics Mandy has witnessed and experienced as a bedside nurse in 2020. Whew! Have you received a letter or email like one of these from your employer? How did it make you feel? We'd love to hear what your healthcare system is doing to retain high quality, incredibly valuable healthcare employees as the entire country is hemorrhaging nurses left and right. Let us know in a future episode! Are you getting bonuses? Appropriate PPE and staffing ratios?  Paid time off for COVID symptoms and/or testing? What would it take for you to work at the bedside right now?    Articles mentioned in this episode: https://www.nsinursingsolutions.com/Documents/Library/NSI_National_Health_Care_Retention_Report.pdf

Vaccine mandates are rolling out all over the place. Listen in as Mandy and HeHe discuss vaccine mandates, testing for employees, and if it is fair to require the vaccine to keep employment status. 

Inside the halls of American hospitals, millions of people find comfort, healing, and support. But for many doctors and nurses, this couldn't be further from the truth.    This podcast will dive into the shadows of American healthcare to investigate and uncover the abuse, control, and political power plays that leave the very people responsible for our nation's health, broken and battered.   We're sharing stories of professionals in medicine that have experienced horrendous treatment at the hands of a broken system that does nothing to stop the trauma. As the Association of American Medical Colleges states, “Long before the #MeToo movement, women in medicine have instinctively banded together to counter a culture that too often tolerated harassment.”   From systemic trauma to abuse of power to the unspoken rules of cover-ups and corruption, Mandy Irby and HeHe will take you to the darkest corners of healthcare in America so you can have an inside look at bringing humanity back to medicine! Sensitive Content Warning: This podcast will share details of triggering subjects such as sexual assault and workplace violence, so if you aren't in a space to listen, respect your mental health and tune in again at another time.   Connect with us on Instagram: @pulsecheck.podcast   https://www.ama-assn.org/residents-students/specialty-profiles/these-medical-specialties-have-biggest-gender-imbalances   https://www.ama-assn.org/practice-management/physician-health/metoo-medicine-after-effects-harassment   https://www.nationalacademies.org/news/2018/06/to-prevent-sexual-harassment-academic-institutions-should-go-beyond-legal-compliance-to-promote-a-change-in-culture-current-approaches-have-not-led-to-decline-in-harassment   https://voice.ons.org/stories/is-sexual-harassment-of-nurses-prevalent-in-health-care

https://www.nationalnursesunited.org/sites/default/files/nnu/graphics/documents/1220_Covid19_DeadlyShame_PandemicEquity_WhitePaper_FINAL.pdf   Today we continue to review the White Paper written by National Nurses United: Deadly Shame: Redressing the devaluation of Registered Nurse Labor Through Pandemic Equity.   Maybe, like us, you've heard of PTSD and burnout, but have you heard of moral injury- what many healthcare professionals are experiencing in the pandemic, additional stressors piled on top of the usual job stresses. First we'll define moral distress, moral injury, and discuss who's at risk and some examples. Maybe it'll feel less lonely for you to learn that maybe what you're experiencing has a name, it's common, and it's totally normal and understandable given the work situation you're currently in.   Can you relate to these feelings or outward symptoms in your work? We'd love to hear your examples of knowing the right thing to do for patients but not being able to provide that safe or adequate care due to institutional constraints. Share with us on IG! @pulsecheck.podcast

When should student training, experience, and education be prioritized over patient safety and our Do No Harm oath? Nurse Flora is our guest today, and we discuss her story of a time where she had just seen enough dismissive patient care. Have you ever felt torn in a middle of what looks, feels, and sounds like coercive or dishonest patient education and care? And if physician and nurse education (in this case, resident training) is priority over patient safety and honest, trauma-informed care, what are we teaching the next generation of healthcare professionals?   *Names and parts of some stories have been changed to protect anonymity of nurse and birthing people

Inside the halls of American hospitals, millions of people find comfort, healing, and support. But for many doctors and nurses, this couldn't be further from the truth.    This podcast will dive into the shadows of American healthcare to investigate and uncover the abuse, control, and political power plays that leave the very people responsible for our nation's health, broken and battered.   We're sharing stories of professionals in medicine that have experienced horrendous treatment at the hands of a broken system that does nothing to stop the trauma. As the Association of American Medical Colleges states, “Long before the #MeToo movement, women in medicine have instinctively banded together to counter a culture that too often tolerated harassment.”   From systemic trauma to abuse of power to the unspoken rules of cover-ups and corruption, Mandy Irby and HeHe will take you to the darkest corners of healthcare in America so you can have an inside look at bringing humanity back to medicine! Sensitive Content Warning: This podcast will share details of triggering subjects such as sexual assault and workplace violence, so if you aren't in a space to listen, respect your mental health and tune in again at another time.   Connect with us on Instagram: @pulsecheck.podcast

Let's paint the picture of what a superhero actually is and why it's dangerous and offensive to call healthcare workers “superheroes.”   Superheroes don't ask to be superheroes.  Mandy tells a personal story of what an administrator said when she left the bedside and quit the hospital.    But we're also told behind the doors of the hospital that we're just part of staffing numbers, we're a warm body, we're disposable.   What would be your superpower in the healthcare system?   Sensitive Content Warning: This podcast will share details of triggering subjects such as sexual assault and workplace violence, so if you aren't in a space to listen, respect your mental health and tune in again at another time.   Links: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10376178.2020.1827964 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jocn.15305 https://www.instagram.com/thekatieduke/   Connect with us on Instagram: @pulsecheck.podcast

Inside the halls of American hospitals, millions of people find comfort, healing, and support. But for many doctors and nurses, this couldn't be further from the truth.    This podcast will dive into the shadows of American healthcare to investigate and uncover the abuse, control, and political power plays that leave the very people responsible for our nation's health, broken and battered.   We're sharing stories of professionals in medicine that have experienced horrendous treatment at the hands of a broken system that does nothing to stop the trauma. As the Association of American Medical Colleges states, “Long before the #MeToo movement, women in medicine have instinctively banded together to counter a culture that too often tolerated harassment.”   From systemic trauma to abuse of power to the unspoken rules of cover-ups and corruption, Mandy Irby and HeHe will take you to the darkest corners of healthcare in America so you can have an inside look at bringing humanity back to medicine! Sensitive Content Warning: This podcast will share details of triggering subjects such as sexual assault and workplace violence, so if you aren't in a space to listen, respect your mental health and tune in again at another time.   Connect with us on Instagram: @pulsecheck.podcast   https://www.ama-assn.org/residents-students/specialty-profiles/these-medical-specialties-have-biggest-gender-imbalances   https://www.ama-assn.org/practice-management/physician-health/metoo-medicine-after-effects-harassment   https://www.nationalacademies.org/news/2018/06/to-prevent-sexual-harassment-academic-institutions-should-go-beyond-legal-compliance-to-promote-a-change-in-culture-current-approaches-have-not-led-to-decline-in-harassment   https://voice.ons.org/stories/is-sexual-harassment-of-nurses-prevalent-in-health-care