Raising Resilience Episode 11: Caring for the Caregivers

Nurses are the largest sector of the healthcare professions — with over 4 million nurses in the United States and more than 20 million nurses worldwide. As the COVID-19 pandemic has swept into our lives over the past year, nurses have played an ever more important role in the health and wellness of our nation and the world. However, nurses are also the canaries in the coal mine of healthcare — sounding the alarm on the impact of the pandemic on stress and resilience among our healthcare professionals. It is essential that those who care for us also have the tools and resources to care for themselves.

The American Nurses Association stepped up, even prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, to offer innovative tools for nurses and non-nurses to focus on their own health and wellness — from a holistic standpoint of body, mind and spirit. As the pandemic has continued to rage on, these tools and resources are even more necessary and helpful. During this episode of Raising Resilience, Holly Carpenter, BSN, RN, Senior Policy Advisor for the American Nurses Association’s Nursing Practice and Work Environment Department, joins Pam Ressler in discussing:

• the unique stressors nurses are now facing

• ways to build resilience during challenging times

• resources to address stress, wellness and resilience for nurses and others

Here are links to the free resources that are discussed during this episode of Raising Resilience:

Healthy Nurse, Healthy Nation

The Well-Being Initiative

ANA Nurse Suicide Prevention/Resilience

ANA COVID-19 Video Education Series

Holly Carpenter, BSN, RN, is a Senior Policy Advisor for the American Nurses Association (Nursing Practice & Work Environment). Her work at the ANA includes developing resources, policies, and educational programs on nurse health, safety and wellness — including the Healthy Nurse, Healthy Nation™ initiative, nurse suicide prevention, immunizations and other occupational health and work environment issues. Prior to the ANA, she was employed by the Maryland Nurses Association and the State of Maryland’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

Raising Resilience Episode 7: How a Pandemic is Changing Healthcare

A definition of resilience is the ability to bend, adapt and adjust to change. Our current global pandemic has necessitated a rapid adoption of different ways to deliver healthcare and the challenge of building resilience and sustainability in these new models. One of the areas that has been fast-tracked is telehealth or virtual visits with healthcare providers. In-person office visits ceased, elective procedures were canceled, hospitals and outpatient practices saw staff furloughed and redeployed to other areas. Primary care practices were rapidly thrust into a steep learning curve of implementing new methods of patient-provider interaction. After the pandemic dissipates, how will healthcare be delivered, are there best practices that are emerging, can telehealth be delivered equitably to vulnerable populations?

On this episode of Raising Resilience, Pam is joined by Barbra Rabson, President and CEO of Massachusetts Health Quality Partners (MHQP) MHQP who shares her observations of this tipping point of telehealth as well as opportunities and challenges it presents to patient and provider interaction and experience. Are there ways to raise our collective resilience with adoption of new methods of healthcare delivery?

Barbra Rabson, President and CEO, of Massachusetts Health Quality Partners (MHQP)

Raising Resilience Episode 4: Lessons We Are Learning

While we are learning to live with a new normal as the coronavirus impacts our lives, are there also openings and opportunities to raise our resilience? Pam Ressler and Dr. Brian Stork discuss how we can help mitigate the fall out from the stress healthcare workers and others are under, as well as how we can continue to socially connect while we are physically distancing ourselves. What lessons can we learn from this massive social experiment of navigating a pandemic together.

Dr. Brian Stork is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Urology at the University of Michigan. He practices in Muskegon, Michigan. His current area of research interest centers around the effects of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) on physician mental health, behavior and burnout. He is also a children’s book author and beekeeper. You can find his physician and patient blogs on DrBrianStork.com and follow him on Twitter at @StorkBrian.

To join or follow the Haiku Challenge that we discussed on this episode, use the hashtag #HaikuChallenge20 on Twitter or Instagram

Dr. Brian Stork