The Conversing Nurse podcast

Send us Fan Mail When I first stumbled upon Shatara Jewell’s Instagram, I thought, “Wow, she’s making an impact—I bet I could learn a lot from her!” So I reached out, she said “Yes” and the rest is history. Shatara serves as a Certified Psychiatric Nurse Lieutenant in the United States Navy and provides dedicated care to military personnel and their families dealing with mental health challenges. ...

Send us Fan Mail Meet Sheena Johnson, a remarkable Jamaican-born woman residing just outside London, where she serves as an ICU nurse practitioner with the UK’s National Health Service. Her journey took a profound turn during the peak of Covid when she faced the heartbreaking loss of her father while caring for some of the sickest patients. This loss plunged her into intense grief, prompting her t...

Send us Fan Mail Erin Johansen is a communications supervisor for a medical flight company, and she’s got her finger on the pulse of the air transport industry. Having grown up in the flight business, she is intimately familiar with each position she oversees.  Imagine a Situation room of sorts. During her 12-hour night shifts, Erin often navigates a bustling control room where 15 to 20 medical fl...

Send us Fan Mail Do you believe in divine intervention? After waking early one morning with Jade on my mind, I couldn't help but feel once again that there’s something greater at work here. Jade Barrera is a wife, a mother, and a NICU nurse. Having worked with her for many years, I’ve had the privilege of watching Jade grow from a novice nurse to a confident leader as charge nurse. As any nur...

Send us Fan Mail Chinelo Okoye is a remarkable double-board-certified nurse practitioner specializing in both adult and pediatric care. Beyond her clinical expertise, she passionately advocates for the representation of nurses in the media. As the founder of Nurse on Purpose, she works to eliminate stereotypes and showcase the intelligence, professionalism, leadership skills, and dedication to pat...

Send us Fan Mail This week, I had the pleasure of catching up with a returning guest, the OG Nursepreneur, Farah Laurent . Since our last conversation over two years ago, she has been achieving remarkable success.  Not only does Farah hold six board certifications, but she has also earned a doctorate in nursing. One exciting development is that Farah hosted her first nursing conference titled “Nur...

Send us Fan Mail In the heart of northern New Zealand, nestled between rolling hills and lush green valleys, lay Heart Place Hospital , a beacon of innovation in the world of healthcare. Founded by Jacqui O'Connor, a Registered Nurse with three decades of experience, this unique wellness charity is unlike any hospital seen before.  After her own dismantling and rebuilding, Jacqui has devoted...

Send us Fan Mail What can I say about Rachell Dumas ? Or perhaps, what can't I say about her?  Rachell is an extraordinary nurse with a powerful story of pregnancy loss that will leave you both in tears and shaking your head in disbelief.  After experiencing the loss of nine pregnancies, Rachell founded the nonprofit organization “A Light After Nine.” This organization aims to provide familie...

Send us Fan Mail This week, I had the pleasure of speaking with NICU mom and author, Jennifer Bernardo. Jennifer gave birth to twins—a boy and a girl—at just 26 weeks gestation. Her book, Week 26 , is a firsthand account of their lives in the NICU and beyond. Jennifer’s journey began with a distressing wake-up call: she was hemorrhaging. Rushed to the hospital, she underwent an emergency C-section...

Send us Fan Mail This week, I had the great pleasure of speaking with my friend and colleague, Dr. David Borge. David is an OB/GYN who has retired from the traditional 9-to-5 work schedule and now enjoys using his expertise in Saipan and, more recently, Panama, his country of birth. As the son of missionaries, David spent his early years with his five siblings in Panama, France, Egypt, and Madagas...

Send us Fan Mail For today’s episode, I’ve got questions and Maggie's got answers. Do you need a nurse advocate? Well, consider this your lucky day. Meet my guest, Maggie Ortiz. As founder and CEO of Advocates for Nurses , she provides guidance, education, and empowerment to nurses facing legal, regulatory, and professional challenges. Terrified of facing a Board of Registered Nursing investi...

Send us Fan Mail My guest this week, Joseph Harrison , is a nurse practitioner who facilitates the creation of independent practices for other nurse practitioners through his company, Avail Health . Per his LinkedIn profile, Joseph states, “Weaving together many threads to help realize the quintuple aim of healthcare.” To be honest, I was unaware of this ambitious initiative before speaking with h...

Send us Fan Mail This week my guest is Sachin Chauhan , the founder and CEO of An Extra M . This India-based organization has provided education and training to over 50,000 nurses and nursing students worldwide, focusing on the essential soft skills needed for effective interpersonal relationships with both patients and colleagues. You may wonder, what are soft skills? Soft skills include critical...

Send us Fan Mail Imagine being a sick or injured child entering the healthcare system and being approached by nurses and doctors wielding strange objects, sharp needles, and unpleasant medications. Now picture being the parent of that child, who naturally wants to protect and advocate but lacks the health literacy to comprehend what is happening. Whether parent or child, you would likely be terrif...

Send us Fan Mail Sleep. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders , quality sleep is as essential to survival as food and water. It is crucial for forming and maintaining the neural pathways in your brain that allow you to learn and create new memories. Lack of sleep can make it harder to concentrate and respond quickly. Now, imagine being a healthcare professional—a nurse, phy...

Send us Fan Mail Imagine for a moment if Angie Gray were a recipe. She would be equal parts professionalism, inspiration, and compassion, with just a pinch of badassery thrown in. But she is not a recipe. She is a thought leader, a nurse coach, a keynote speaker, and she has the challenging task of training C-suite executives to bridge the gap between them and the healthcare professionals on the f...

Send us Fan Mail   Beth Sanford is known as the "Sunshine Nurse" for two reasons. First, she is a doctorally-prepared nurse who has conducted extensive research on the importance of vitamin D in improving patient outcomes. Her studies have explored how vitamin D levels affect ICU patients, long-term care residents, and global maternal health. Beth is passionate about addressing vitamin D...

Send us Fan Mail Here's a quick look at some of the great interviews and plans for 2025! Contact The Conversing Nurse podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theconversingnursepodcast/ Website: https://theconversingnursepodcast.com Your review is so important to this Indie podcaster! You can leave one here!   https://theconversingnursepodcast.com/leave-me-a-review Would you like to be a...

Send us Fan Mail This week I stepped way outside my comfort zone and spoke with Tulare County Fire Chief, Charlie Norman.   I can confidently say that many nurses do not fully understand what firefighters do. We often see them in the ambulance bay and in our communities, but do we really take the time to SEE them?  Do we know where the budget for fire services comes from? Do we understand how fire...

Send us Fan Mail Erika Browning is one of the most interesting guests I've had to date. She has a diverse educational background, earning degrees in Spanish, Biology, and Nursing. And the diversity doesn't stop there. Her nursing experience ranges from working in the emergency room to the ICU, from being a travel nurse to a sexual assault nurse examiner, and from a case manager to starti...

Send us Fan Mail I jumped at the opportunity to talk to my guest this week, Sallie Jessie. Sallie is an incredible person with a unique perspective!  First, she has a niche job: she is a mobile wound care clinic nurse and I loved hearing all about that. She is also a blogger. When she became a wife and mother, she identified a gap in resources for nurses balancing family and career and then took t...

Send us Fan Mail In my working days, I was a member of my institution’s Bioethics committee. I’m now a retired nurse and continue to serve as a community member. Constantly impressed by this committee’s work, I wanted you to meet two of these brilliant minds, so I recently sat down with Sandra Shadley, a licensed marriage and family therapist and our committee chair, and Dr. Ryan Howard, our hospi...

Send us Fan Mail Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and Kali Dayton .  Kali Dayton is an ICU nurse practitioner and like Gandhi, MLK Jr., and Parks, Kali is peacefully protesting the way ICU patients are cared for. Similar to the civil rights advocates before her, Kali fights for the rights of ICU patients. She believes they have the right to limited sedation, early mobilization,...

Send us Fan Mail Pablo Picasso said, “The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away.” Sarah Lorenzini has a life filled with both meaning and purpose. She is a rapid-response nurse who utilizes her knowledge and storytelling skills to educate nurses in various critical care aspects through her popular podcast, Rapid Response RN, which has over 120 episodes. In th...

Send us Fan Mail Happy Halloween Eve! Today's episode is all about the spooky. A few weeks ago on Instagram, I posted my call to action for your spooky stories and got some great responses! I was looking up the most haunted hospitals in the United States and here's what I found: Linda Vista Community Hospital , located in Boyle Heights, East LA. This hospital is considered one of the mos...