Nursing the Nation

This week Melissa is taking the comprehensive exams to move on to the dissertation phase of her nursing PhD education, so we are on a brief break! But we still want to hear from you- our email is nursing.nation.voice@gmail.com and visit us at Nursingthenation.substack.com. See you all next week!

Soapbox Saturday is a segment of Nursing the Nation where either Jamie or Melissa Anne step up on their figurative soapbox and talk about something they feel strongly about. Today's Soapbox is all about social determinants of health: the economic, environmental, and social conditions that shape our well-being long before we step into a doctor’s office or hospital. Jamie challenges the narratives w...

In this episode of Nursing the Nation , Jamie and Melissa Anne sit down with Dr. Heidi Collins Fantasia to unpack how recent federal policies are threatening women’s health. From scrubbing women’s health content off government websites to cutting research funding and dismantling DEI programs, Dr. Fantasia explains the far-reaching consequences for women, families, and the future of nursing science...

In this episode of Nursing the Nation , co-hosts Jamie Bourgeois and Melissa Anne DuBois share their personal journeys into nursing and why they launched a podcast at the intersection of nursing, policy, and current events. From psych nursing to perinatal care, they reveal how nursing is far more than bedside work; it’s advocacy, holistic care, and a political force shaping everyday life. Make sur...

Today we’re launching Shout Out Saturday , a segment dedicated to celebrating nurses who live out the ethical core of nursing. This is a space to spotlight a fellow nurse who is truly living out the Nursing Code of Ethics. These are the nurses who remind us that our work doesn’t end at the bedside because nursing is also about advocacy, equity, and making an impact on the communities we serve. Our...

Jamie and Melissa Anne take on the Medicare changes in The One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBBA), signed into law by President Trump on July 4, 2025. OBBBA makes significant (although less extensive than Medicaid) changes to Medicare that could still have major impacts on seniors and people with disabilities. While core benefits remain intact for those who still qualify, the law tightens eligibility for...

This week, we unpack the sweeping new law formerly known as the One Big Beautiful Bill —now signed into law by President Trump. While it promises tax breaks and rural relief, it delivers historic Medicaid cuts, stricter eligibility requirements, and new barriers to care that could leave 12 million Americans uninsured. Jamie and Melissa Anne break down what this means for nurses, patients, and enti...

Soapbox Saturday is segment of Nursing the Nation where Jamie or Melissa Anne step up on their figurative soapbox and talk about something they feel strongly about. In today's Soapbox, Jamie explains why nurses are political, and why you should, too. This means a commitment to civic engagement for just and equitable health policy at local, national, and global levels. Nursing the Nation a podcast...

In the second half of our series finale, Jamie and Melissa Anne take on one of the most inflammatory claims in the MAHA commission’s MOCHA report: that gender-affirming care is “child chemical and surgical mutilation.” We unpack how this rhetoric misrepresents transgender healthcare and ignores both medical guidelines and clinical realities. We explore the 2024 HHS review of transgender youth care...

In the (almost) final episode of Decoding “Make Our Children Healthy Again”: What Nurses Want You to Know , co-hosts Jamie and Melissa Anne examine one of the MAHA commission’s most controversial claims: that American pediatric care is dangerously overmedicalized. The MOCHA report criticizes the use of medications, surgeries, and even routine lab tests in children as examples of systemic overtreat...

In this episode, Jamie and Melissa Anne tackle the fourth major claim in the MAHA Commission’s MOCHA report: that American pediatric care is overmedicalized, with too many vaccines. While the original plan was to explore the broader claim about overuse of medications and mental health care, the complexity of vaccine misinformation—especially from RFK Jr.—warranted a dedicated episode. The hosts br...

Today we are tackling Part 3 of our Series MAHA and Make Our Children Healthy Again: What Nurses Want You to Know. In the last two episodes we discussed the history of the MOCHA report and its take on topics such as diet and ultra-processed foods and chemicals in our food and environments. Today we we get into the nuances of part 3 of the report on children's decreased physical activity, chronic s...

In part two in the series on the MAHA report, Jamie and Melissa Anne continue their critical look at the “Make Our Children Healthy Again” (MOCHA) report from a nursing perspective. This time they dive into its second major claim: the dangers of cumulative chemical exposure from food additives, pesticides, microplastics, and more. Jamie and Melissa Anne break down what the science really says abou...

Make America Healthy Again, or MAHA, is a movement largely associated with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., as the Secretary of Health and Human Services. It's positioned as a response to what he describes as a chronic disease epidemic in the United States. On February 13, 2025, President Donald Trump issued an executive order establishing the MAHA commission, chaired by RFK Jr. On May 22nd, they released t...

Welcome to "Nursing the Nation," a podcast where we dissect today's headlines through the uniquely insightful lens of the nurse. Join your hosts, Jamie & Melissa Anne, as they use their nursing expertise to navigate the complexities of national events, offering perspectives rooted in holism, advocacy, and nursing science. Beyond the medical jargon and political noise, they’ll explore the human...