The Ashley O Show

Today we chat about the nursing rules that no one tells us, but everyone expects of us. These aren't lab values from your textbook, or nursing diagnoses, but instead, these are common courtesies that are the backbone of a well-functioning nursing unit. These expectations may sound like common sense, but they are often forgotten, especially by newer nurses who are just finding their footing. S...

On this week's episode, we are revisiting our most popular topic: the nursing interview! But this time, we are chatting about interviewing as an EXPERIENCED nurse. We discuss your resume, general interviewing tips, interview anxiety, questions to expect, and how to interview your interviewer. You are no longer a brand new nurse, so they have to sell the job to you just as much as you need to...

Unpopular opinion: sometimes being a quitter is a STRENGTH, not a weakness. It takes courage to quit situations, behaviors, and people that are no longer aligned for you, that are hurting you, or that are preventing your growth. Quitting is about self-advocacy, self-awareness, and self-love. If you are contemplating taking that leap-of-faith, leaving that toxic unit, or changing careers for someth...

On this episode, we chat about some key interventions you can use when your patient is desaturation. We discuss different devices and their specifications, who to call, and how to assist your patient while waiting for help. Follow along and join the Nursing Co-op community on Instagram @ashley_nursingcoop and on Facebook in The Nursing Co-op Huddle! We would love to see you there! As always, messa...

Does is it ever feel like your job is taking over your entire life? After your work days, do you find that you have no energy life to give to your loved ones, or to yourself? Are you finding that your health is falling through the cracks? If you said yes, this episode is for YOU!  Screw that elusive idea of "work-life balance." Balance implies perfect harmony, equal time spent in every a...

On this week's episode, we chat about 5 tips for dealing with a coworker who is not pulling their weight on the unit. Sometimes this is an uncomfortable skill to master, but one that is so important for unit cohesion. It can be so frustrating to have that one coworker who doesn't answer their call lights, ignores every alarm, and disappears from the unit throughout their shift. Let'...

This week's episode comes after a long call weekend and an exhausted brain. Reminder: you are doing the best you can,  and that is ENOUGH. I am rooting for you, and I am proud of you!  Follow along and join the Nursing Co-op community on Instagram @ashley_nursingcoop and on Facebook in The Nursing Co-op Huddle! We would love to see you there! As always, message me with any feedback, comments,...

On today's episode, we discuss a patient case in the procedural setting! This patient was undergoing a cerebral angiogram and during her procedure had significant changes in her ABCs, specifically her heart rate, oxygen level, and blood pressure. We chat about a few simple nursing considerations and nursing interventions that don't require an order.  Follow along and join the Nursing Co-...

On today's episode, we chat about a few quick tips to help you manage a patient with a central line, and protect them from infection while they have it!  Follow along and join the Nursing Co-op community on Instagram @ashley_nursingcoop and on Facebook in The Nursing Co-op Huddle! We would love to see you there! As always, message me with any feedback, comments, or questions on Instagram, or...

On today's episode, we chat about navigating seasons of overwhelm in and outside of nursing. Nursing is challenging enough, and we tend to pile more into our lives outside of our jobs. I fill you all in on the massive projects I have piled onto my life, and how I am working to manage it all while still prioritizing my health in the process.  Follow along and join the Nursing Co-op community o...

This past week I sat down with an inspiring 18-year-old woman who a friend is mentoring. She is starting a nursing program, but is totally unsure about what she wants to do. She has TONS of ideas and career paths that she is interested in, but doesn't know which is the RIGHT path. This conversation got me thinking about my own journey, and with all of its twists and turns I realized, I had NO...

Okay gang, nursing is HARD right now. We are dodging endless obstacles, managing immense overwhelm, and navigating understaffing combined with over-working. Unfortunately, I can't fix the state of the world, but I CAN offer a practice that I have found incredibly helpful while trying to manage my own experience. Enter: MINDFULNESS.  I know, I know. Mindfulness is a buzzword thrown around ever...

On this episode we continue our chat about life as a Cath Lab RN. This time around we are discussing what it is like being on-call, pros/cons of the environment, and procedures for STEMI's and strokes!  Follow along and join the Nursing Co-op community on Instagram @ashley_nursingcoop and on Facebook in The Nursing Co-op Huddle! We would love to see you there! As always, message me with any f...

On this week's episode I sat down with Certified Holistic Nutritionist and podcast host Corinne Angelica to chat all things HORMONAL HEALTH, specifically geared towards nurses. Guys, I don't know about you, but I, for one, learned NOTHING about my hormones in health class. They told us all about peer pressure and provided plenty of scare tactics about avoiding pregnancy, but no one told...

Gang...nursing is HARD right now, and I don't know about you guys, but I am freaking TIRED. Today we are here to first RANT about these frustrations, discuss the current state of things in nursing, and reflect on the nursing shortage, but also to highlight the incredible OPPORTUNITY for the future of nursing.  As Sam Cooke said, "a change is gonna come," and nurses are the drivers a...

On this week's episode, we chat about 3 practical goals for you to bring in to the New Year. I know that you are being bombarded with all of the "New Year, new you" sentiments and the goals that you "should" be embracing as we enter 2022, but I want to talk about the things we should be thinking about this year: fighting for ourselves, asking for what we need, and trying t...

On this week's skills episode, we chat about a few TACTILE tips for talking to family, especially when things aren't going well. I am talking about those hard conversations about poor prognosis, new diagnoses, and potentially death. I believe it is better to be honest than to sugar-coat news. This topic is HEAVY, and definitely a gray area open to varying strategies, but I hope you find...

In this episode we chat about what nurse life looks like in the Cardiac Cath Lab! In part one, we discuss some background on the flow of the day in the lab, types of procedures, various roles in each procedure, and some of the differences between floor and procedural nursing.  Follow along and join the Nursing Co-op community on Instagram @ashley_nursingcoop and on Facebook in The Nursing Co-op Hu...

On this week's episode, we have a POWERFUL conversation with Lina Latini of the Anchor Within podcast. Lina is a physical therapist and podcaster obsessed with empowering women and helping them step out of their comfort zones, identify their core values, and unleash their full potential. Lina has such amazing energy, and exudes passion AND compassion. We chat all about how to identify when it...

Your head-to-toe assessment is at the CORE of your nursing practice. It literally sets the stage for the rest of your shift. But it can also be one of the most complex skills to master, since there is SO MUCH that goes into a solid and efficient assessment. On this episode, we chat about a few important tips that I hope will help you streamline your assessment and start your shift off strong.  Fol...

On this episode, we chat about how you don't you always have to be strong and stoic. You are HUMAN.  Follow along and join the Nursing Co-op community on Instagram @ashley_nursingcoop and on Facebook in The Nursing Co-op Huddle! We would love to see you there! As always, message me with any feedback, comments, or questions on Instagram, or shoot me an email at thenursingcoop@gmail.com. Happy...

We have all seen the videos about PERFECTLY crafted morning routines that start at 4am, involve apple cider vinegar shots, 2 hours of stretching, green juice, and warm lemon water. We all know that for the average busy human, these are IMPOSSIBLE to achieve. Let alone the busy as heck nurse. So let's chat about a start-of-the-day (morning or evening) routine that is REALISTIC, ATTAINABLE, and...

Unpopular opinion: the nursing shortage is not really about how many nurses we have in the workforce. Its actually about the conditions these nurses have to work in, the lack of resources/support available to them, and the incredibly high rates of burnout. To fix the shortage, we have to fix the system. We don't simply need more nurses, we need to RETAIN the nurses we already have.  Follow al...

Let's chat about paging doctors and providers. This can be INTIMIDATING, especially as a newer nurse. On this episode, we talk about a few key tips to help you master this skill and start paging and chatting with docs like a PRO.  Follow along and join the Nursing Co-op community on Instagram @ashley_nursingcoop and on Facebook in The Nursing Co-op Huddle! We would love to see you there! As a...

This episode is for you if you have ever asked yourself questions like:  -Why did I even become a nurse?  -Why did I spend all of this money and effort on something I HATE? -I was told I would love this career, what is wrong with me?  -Is the problem the profession of nursing all together?  HOT TAKE: These questions are normal. I have asked myself these things a million times. That does not mean y...