By, Lori Boggan
Organ transplantation, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, dates back as early as 1869 with the first skin transplant. The first kidney transplant occurred nearly one hundred years later in 1954. Organ transplantation has saved countless lives. In 2014, transplantation history was made. It was the year the first transplantation bore life. Continue reading
by, Michelle Amstutz, RN
Saint Joseph Mercy Hospital, Ann Arbor MI
I would like to share what an impact attending nationals has been for me over the last few years.
A few years ago I went to hear Michelle Collins present on Nitrous. She talked about bringing nitrous to Vanderbilt University Hospital. I was so inspired by her talk that I reached out to her to find out how I could do the same thing. Continue reading
by, Shelly Lopez Gray, MSN, RNC, IBCLC
by, Lori Boggan, RN
Working in neonatal intensive care can be tough no matter how long you have worked in it. With time however, many things become routine. 500 gram babies are our business. Cooling asphyxiated babies is our business. We are used to this world – the ventilators, the treatments, the pumps, the alarms. The thing is, the parents and family are not used to this. It is shocking, frightening. It is our duty to remember this is their first experience in a world they never imagined, perhaps did not even know existed. How can we as care providers support them? Continue reading
by, Bree Fallon, BSN, RNC-OB, C-EFM
When I was told my administration would be sending three of us to the AWHONN Convention, my heart skipped a beat. Actually, I squealed like a child and jumped up and down. It was a dream come true! I couldn’t help but compare Convention to a labor and delivery nurse’s Disneyland. It’s funny to me now remembering that day, as I would have had no way of possibly knowing what a tremendous impact the trip to Convention would have, both on my own nursing career as well as my unit. Continue reading
March is Women’s History month where we pay tribute to the generations of women whose commitment to nature and the planet have proved invaluable to society.
Here at AWHONN we honor five nurses who contribution to women and newborn’s health has improved outcomes and saved lives through countless generations. Continue reading
by, Marilyn Pierce-Bulger, ANP
Jason is a 13 year old boy who knows he is different but he does not understand why. He blames himself for the difficulty he has had in school and with social relationships over the years. He thinks he is not trying hard enough or is not smart enough. His teachers and parents view him as willful, rather, than ‘unable’ due to his hidden disability. Continue reading
by, Julie Vasher, DNP, RNC-OB, CNS, C-EFM
Clinical Implementation Lead at the California Maternity Quality Care Collaborative at Stanford University
Janine is a 27-year-old African American woman who gave birth to her second baby without complications ten days ago. She came into the emergency room with complaints of cough and extreme tiredness. She attributes the fatigue to her new baby’s sleep schedule. She spoke in bursts because she appeared to be short of breath. Her vital signs are: blood pressure 120/60; heart rate 112 bpm; afebrile; respiratory rate 28 with an oxygen saturation of 94%; and she is considered obese (BMI 36). She has continued swelling in her feet. She is given antibiotics, steroids and breathing treatments. She feels better and is discharged home. A week later she returns to her physician with continued and worsening symptoms. The physician changes her antibiotic for an upper respiratory infection and suggests future testing for asthma. A few days later, the patient experiences cardiac arrest at home and resuscitative attempts are not successful. Autopsy findings indicate she died from cardiomyopathy. (A composite case study representative of several PPCM cases found online)
Women are entering pregnancy with more chronic disease like hypertension, diabetes, and obesity. (CDC). Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death for women during pregnancy and the postpartum period (Hameed, Lawton, McCain et al., 2015). Peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) is an unusual disorder occurring in pregnancy that causes the heart to dilate and weaken, leading to symptoms of heart failure. Continue reading
by, Lori Boggan, RN
The closing of one year and start of a new inundates us with self improvement posts, the year’s super foods, super exercise, or super drink. According to The Global Wellness Institute, wellness is a trillion-dollar industry worldwide that we buy, eat, and drink up.
We want so badly to find a quick solution to weight loss, health, and the pursuit of happiness. It’s a fact that Americans suffer from stress related diseases. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, numerous studies have shown that stress in the workplace can be linked to cardiovascular disease, depression, anxiety, workplace injury, and impaired immune function, to name a few. This is a very strong and clear indication that we are stressing ourselves to death!! Continue reading
by, Joyce Merrigan, RN
“If we don’t do it……it will never be done.”
The image will be forever ingrained in my memory: the remains of a miscarriage scooped up by a gloved hand in the emergency department, tossed into a plastic specimen container and left on a counter. No condolences were offered to the woman who had experienced this loss. This memory haunts me to this day but also drives me to advocate for change. Continue reading