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☀️ Good Morning, TNB Readers!
As nurses, we work hard; long days, challenging patients, and no lunch breaks. It’s a trialing job. And we do it without complaint on top of whatever is going on at home. This year, in honor of Nurses Week, TNB wants you to nominate a nurse who goes above and beyond their call of duty for a chance to win one of nine American Express gift cards (powered by our friends at Cherokee Medical Uniforms, connectRN, and Guardian Medical Direction).
It’s truly an honor to give nurses a little extra love this year.
Stay curious!
Hannah B. (aka Nurse Hans)
Chief Ops Guru
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Financially Struggling, St. Joseph Medical Center Makes Some Major Changes
St. Joseph Medical Center, operated by Virginia Mason Franciscan Health, has fallen on tough financial times and has been forced to close services to survive. It has announced it is discontinuing its Transfusion-Free Medicine & Surgery Program. This development comes on the heels of another major change at the hospital — the expenditure of its contract with Pacific Anesthesia after the group could no longer provide the number of anesthesia doctors necessary to maintain the contract’s staffing terms.
The program closure affects St. Anne Hospital, St. Anthony Hospital, St. Clare Hospital, St. Elizabeth Hospital, St. Francis Hospital, St. Joseph Medical Center, and St. Michael Medical Center. Other nationwide hospitals have similar programs that allow treatment options for patients who cannot or choose not to receive blood transfusions. Virginia Mason notes that it has physicians and providers trained in “bloodless medicine practices” and can continue to support services.
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Scientists Develop Graphene “Tattoo” Pacemaker
Researchers at Northwestern University have developed a pacemaker thinner than a strand of hair. In mouse experiments, this soft, flexible graphene “tattoo” could detect irregular heart rhythms and deliver electrical cardiac stimulation to correct them. “Our soft, flexible device is not only unobtrusive but also intimately and seamlessly conforms directly onto the heart to deliver more precise measurements,” researchers said in a statement.
The heart tattoo could take accurate electrochemical measurements on an actively beating heart for 60 days, though more extended applications will require additional glue or adhesives. To translate the device to humans, researchers will also need to figure out how to get around the issue of tissue growing over the tattoos. The scientists don’t expect much immune reaction from the graphene but note the benefit of additional anti-inflammatory coatings.
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ICU Nurse Saves Infant at the Grocery Store
At the local H Mart in North Carolina, Binta Diallo, an ICU nurse with experience treating adults, saved a baby’s life. The infant’s mother cried out that her baby was not breathing, so Diallo jumped to action and inspected the infant, which had blood in its nose and mouth. She took the baby to the front of the store to save time for EMS when they arrived, and she got to work.
Diallo felt no pulse from the baby, and conducting breathless CPR didn’t help. She couldn’t do mouth-to-mouth due to the blood, so she decided to rip off her face mask so she could at least blow air into the baby’s mouth. After Diallo provided 5 to 10 seconds of infant CPR, the infant gasped. She later learned that the family was visiting from out of state, and the baby was discharged after two days.
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🔎 NOBC INSIGHTS powered by
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For many nurses, the board service experience is foreign - something they have never seen or had access to. If you are a nurse who serves on a board, here are some ways to increase nurse exposure to board service:
Invite a nurse friend to an open board session to sit in and listen.
Join LinkedIn and let others know about the boards you’re serving on.
Visit your local nursing school and ask the Dean if you could be scheduled to speak to the leadership class and/or speak to the student nurses association.
Don’t live near a college or university? High schools often have future nurse clubs that you can speak to about leadership and serving on boards as nurses.
When we see other nurses represented as board leaders, it becomes easier to imagine ourselves at that board table as well.
Samantha Beaver | Linguist; Author; Senior Workplace Communications Analyst; Communications and Research Consultant; NOBC News Editor
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DAILY DIVERSION 💊
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What’s more important for a strong heart: exercise or diet? Not surprisingly, research shows that aerobic and resistance exercises boost endothelial function. Interestingly, however, other research shows that one ingredient can work as well as exercise: curcumin, the yellow pigment in turmeric, and curry powder. So if you want a heart of gold, combine exercise with daily curcumin.
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🤯 ONE BIG NUMBER
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$500,000,000
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The number of deaths reported to the FDA associated with Philips’ recalled sleep apnea devices and ventilators since April 2021. In addition, the agency received over 90,000 reports of breakdowns related to the soundproofing foam in the recalled devices.
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The Bonus Nurses Deserve for Nurses Week!
Partner with Us!