See You Now Podcast

Gender equality. Economic development. Greater health outcomes. According to nurse, researcher and policy expert Barbara Stilwell, PhD, RN, FRCN and Executive Director of Nursing Now, a global campaign seeking to elevate the nursing profession, more nurses in leadership and policy roles can result in all those things and more. In this episode, Stilwell speaks with Shawna Butler about the need to raise awareness of the impact nurses have in transforming health systems, the groundbreaking work they have accomplished in devising solutions to patient care and health outcomes and the exciting potential of nurse leadership and innovation.

As an emergency nurse and palliative care liaison, Jonathan Bartels, RN, understands the toll that witnessing a death can have on healthcare worker resiliency. In this episode, Shawna Butler talks with Bartels on designing “The Pause,” a meaningful and effective practice that health systems are rapidly adopting to address the alarming rate of clinician burnout and mental stress.

Pioneer, MacArthur Fellow and Nurse Midwife Ruth Watson Lubic, EdD, RN, CNM, FAAN, FACNM, opened the first freestanding birth center for low-income families in New York City at a time where it was common for women to have very little say in their maternitycare and labor and delivery experience. In this episode, Lubic talks with Shawna Butler about her six decades of experience in nurse-midwifery, how far care delivery in childbirth has come and what the next 60 years of health innovation in this space could be.

As the world responds to COVID-19, increasingly and alarmingly the daily headlines include the risks our healthcare teams and essential services personnel confront in efforts to care for patients and keep our communities safe. Behind these headlines are stories of daily experiences and individual lives. Nurse Jennifer Gil shares her diary about being on the frontlines of COVID-19, about contracting the virus and being isolated from loved ones in a time of immense uncertainty. It’s a powerful reminder that we cannot lose focus on the emotional impact of this illness.

Why is it then that nurses are often not screened or provided with mental health support in their workspaces? Nurse scientist Judy Davidson DNP, RN, FCCM, FAAN works to reinforce the mental health needs of nurses while bringing awareness to nurse suicides. She creates programs that provide simple and accessible tools for health systems to adopt throughout their networks to ensure that nurses can stay strong, be supported, and get help when needed.

The CDC reports that Black mothers die at three to four times the rate of White mothers and that the mortality rate of Black infants is higher than that of any other ethnic group in the U.S. Regardless of income and education level, childbirth for Black women is more dangerous than it is for White women. In this episode, we hear from three healthcare innovators who personally and professionally—as Black women and advisors to the Black Mamas Matter Alliance—work tirelessly to advance policy grounded in human rights and reproductive justice to improve Black maternal health and lives.

In this episode, we meet indigenous nurse researcher John Lowe, RN, PhD, FAAN, and discover how he is addressing the long-standing structural impediments that have kept American Indian, Alaska Native and indigenous youth from connecting to their cultural heritage, native identity, and to a history that he describes as a source of great strength. John established the first Center for Indigenous Nurse Research For Health Equity where he is innovating on ancestral wisdom and tradition—through practices like the Virtual Talking Circle—to enable indigenous youth to move away from harmful behaviors and move toward lives and coping mechanisms that are both positive and strength-based.

Seeing the need to keep homeless shelters, their guests and staff safe and coronavirus free, Nurse Disrupted—a pandemic response start-up in Madison, WI—was launched in record time to build fast, simple, virtual health screenings for homeless shelters and communities. On this episode, we meet nurses Bre Loughlin, MS, RN, and Tracy Zvenyach, PhD, APRN-NP, co-founders of Nurse Disrupted, and dig into the details of launching their new venture.

There has been a long-standing relationship between faith, clergy, health, and healthcare. Faith-based partnerships have forged and furthered public health goals historically and more importantly, at present. Clergy and faith-based organizations are pivotal and trusted players in their communities providing service, leadership, connection, communication, distribution of services, and increasingly, innovation. In this episode we explore with UK HealthCare’s Chief Diversity Officer Tukea Talbert DNP, RN, CDP how partnerships with our communities’ faith leaders and congregations can build trust, break systemic barriers to access, and move toward health equity.

In this episode, nurse practitioner Wendy Wright, APRN, FAANP, examines a fresh model for primary care where access, time, presence, data, and innovation are key to how her nurse practitioner-led primary care clinics are meeting people where they are—even if that’s in the front seat of their car, under a tent, or in a parking lot!