Shows
The Pulse Check PodcastEp. 50: Exploring Patient Code of ConductSit 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...2022-12-0949 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 49: Violence in the Workplace: A Story About BoundariesMandy 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.
2022-11-1850 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 48: Patient Advocacy in the Birth RoomToday 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...2022-11-111h 13The Pulse Check PodcastEp.47: When your best is hurting your career, it might be time to make a shift.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.nursea...2022-11-041h 03The Pulse Check PodcastEp. 46: Abortion Care with Mel on MedicineOver 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:
Fol...2022-10-2840 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 45: Self Empowerment and Healing Ourselves with Nurse MissySelf 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 mea...2022-10-141h 09The Pulse Check PodcastEp. 44: HIPAA Rules and Healthcare Professionals on Social MediaNurse 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: @puls...2022-10-0729 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 43: Functional Medicine: Using Nursing Fundamentals to Become True HealersFunctional 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 th...2022-09-3046 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 42: Secondary Traumatic Stress Syndrome in Healthcare ProfessionalsToday’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 mode...2022-09-2355 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp: 41: Nursing Tech and InnovationEver 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 ben...2022-09-1635 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 40: Leaving Bedside after a Toxic Work ExperienceThis 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!
2022-09-0943 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 39: Is Medical School Teaching How to Abuse?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 i...2022-09-0230 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp.38: When Nurse Whistleblowers Then File Retaliation ClaimsWhen 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...2022-08-2652 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 37: The Impacts of Roe vs. Wade: A 60-day Post-Roe ReviewHow 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 a...2022-08-1930 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp.36: Nursing Conference BreakdownMandy 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!
2022-07-2231 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 35: When Medical Staff Weaponizes Patient AutonomyOn 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
2022-06-2428 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 34: Evaluating Trauma Informed Care as a PatientNo 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.
2022-06-1744 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 33: Is a Listserve the Answer to Fixing America’s Healthcare System?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
2022-06-0324 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 32: What is the definition of ‘Patient Advocate’?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
2022-05-2746 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 31: Why Nurse’s Week is BSOpening 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
2022-05-2024 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp.30: The United ”Million” Nurses March in DCNational 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/
2022-05-1317 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 29: Will Roe v Wade be Overturned?@Dr.MartaPerez >> Dr. Marta Perez
Online Abortion Access:
https://www.heyjane.co
https://www.plancpills.org2022-05-0731 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp: 28: The Language Gap in Medicine on the Path to Trauma-Informed CareThis 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 th...2022-04-291h 25The Pulse Check PodcastEp. 27: The RaDonda Vaught CaseIf 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 perspecti...2022-04-0149 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 26: Implications of Putting Yourself on the InternetEven 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 jus...2022-03-2529 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 25: Challenging and Changing Systems with Claire PhillipsOur 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 pe...2022-03-1144 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 24: Infantilizing Language Fosters Distrust Between Medical Staff and PatientsThe 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...2022-03-0428 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 23: Nurses Banned from Leaving Their Jobs At-WillRecently, 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 leng...2022-02-2524 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 22: The Hidden World of Hospice NursingToday 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 y...2022-02-181h 00The Pulse Check PodcastEp. 21: Legislation to Cap Nurses PayLet’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 s...2022-02-1132 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 20: Questions about Travel Nursing with Nurse SibylThis 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 real...2022-02-0444 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 19: Why Language in Healthcare MattersWhen 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 di...2022-01-2137 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 18: How to File a ComplaintLinks:
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 co...2022-01-071h 04The Pulse Check PodcastEp. 17: StrikebreakersStrike 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
2021-12-1028 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 16: When Experience Doesn‘t Equate to Wisdom in NursingHealthcare, 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 wit...2021-11-1929 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 15: Re-thinking the Way Nurses are Educated with Jennifer Ohlendorf2021-10-2252 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 14: Trauma Bandaids with Amy QualeyAmy, 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 ab...2021-10-151h 04The Pulse Check PodcastEp. 13: Racial Biases in Health CareMandy 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
2021-10-0750 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp.12: A Day in the Life of a COVID Charge NurseThis 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...2021-10-0159 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 11: Mass Exodus of Nurseshttps://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
2021-09-2425 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 10: Hospitals are Scrambling to Keep StaffWhoa, 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 sym...2021-09-1721 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp.9: Should healthcare workers be forced to get the vaccine?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.
2021-09-1027 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 8 Covid: People Over Profits an Interview2021-08-2735 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 7: Sexual Harassment of (mainly) Female Nurses2021-08-2034 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp 6: The Gender Gap in MedicineInside 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 Associa...2021-08-1335 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp.5: Moral Distress & Moral Injuryhttps://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...2021-08-0641 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp.3: The Care PenaltyInside 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 Associa...2021-07-3029 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp.4: Obstetrical Violence InterviewWhen 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?
2021-07-3048 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp. 2: Heroes, but at What Expense?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?
Sensitiv...2021-07-3029 minThe Pulse Check PodcastEp 1: Welcome to Pulse Check PodcastInside 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 Associa...2021-07-2928 min