Emergency Nurse

Shaken by the experience of witnessing a child nearly die from heat exhaustion after accidentally being left in a hot car, emergency room nurse Maria Striemer, RN, BA, channeled her insight to invent the Backseet Buddy, an app that provides parents with peace of mind that it won’t happen to them.

Nurses are more likely to come in contact with human trafficking victims during the time of their exploitation than any other profession[1], but very few are identified by staff and helped to find safety. Nurse innovator Danielle Jordan Bastien, APRN, DNP, FNP-BC, was determined to help those potential victims who might be in danger by developing a screening protocol that helps healthcare workers identify signs of abuse.

After working as an emergency room nurse for 10 years, Wendy Weirbach, BSN, RN, CEN, was looking for a change of pace. She went on to pursue a nursing position at Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, Calif. She immediately fell in love with the job and decided she wanted to spend the remainder of her career at the theme park.