
Words of Wisdom from A Friend
A few weeks ago, I met a friend for lunch. He has been in healthcare for over 50 years and has seen the ups and downs of the healthcare system. I asked him how he remains optimistic when the system seems to be going backwards. Here are his words of wisdom. "My focus...

Upheaval of Illness, The Challenge of Recovery, and What is Left in the Wake
As many of you know who follow me, I am a Brain Cancer Survivor. I have been doing well and moving forward with my life. In this week's post, I want to reflect on the upheaval of illness, the challenge of recovery, and what is left in the wake. Recently, I had a few...

The Challenge in Finding Qualified Workers for the Trades
Last week, I was looking for a contractor in North Florida to give me a bid to have a room added to a trailer for my patient, who is a quadriplegic. He needs more space in the trailer for his supplies and equipment. What I found out as I worked through the list of...

Searching For The Unknown
How do you find something when you don't know what you are looking for? How do you search for the unknown? So many times, I have sorted out issues by talking to friends and colleagues. Just talking to them about the issue and laying out questions helps to focus my...

Are You a Health Kind Professional?
I was browsing my LinkedIn messages and came across a post from Bruce Berger, Ph.D., where he introduced a new term that immediately caught my attention. The term was Health Kind Professional (HKP). Bruce is a colleague and a friend, and someone who understands...

Patient Advocacy: Teaching People Take An Active Role in their Health and Healthcare
A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to sit down with a friend and colleague, Rajitha Bommakanti, BSN, RN-CCM, to discuss nurses' roles in patient advocacy. We discussed how patient advocacy teaches people to take an active role in their health and healthcare. When...

Radio Interview: The Nurse Listening Tour
Recently I was asked to be part of a radio show hosted by Sharon Weinstein and Dina Readinger who have developed the Nurse Listening Tour. I was asked to be part of the tour and share insights on where nurses are today and how we can get back to our baseline. Here is...

See One, Do One, Teach One: Building Competencies To Empower Patient Engagement
There is a saying that patient advocates can use to empower their patients to improve patient engagement. It is See One, Do One, Teach One. Teaching our patients what we know, allowing them to practice with you and then work on their own, will enable them to be their...