From Academia to Functional Medicine, Running the Gamut with Kerry Johnson

Kerry Johnson has worn many hats in her time as a nurse: bedside nurse, FNP, and Functional Medicine NP. What better person than her to teach the new nurses coming into the profession. Listen today to hear how Kerry got into education and how her passion for health turned her to functional medicine.

ABOUT KERRY

Kerry Johnson had been working as a nurse for several years when she decided to get her family nurse practitioner certification. Once she received that degree and was seeing patient’s in the clinic, she noticed how she wasn’t preventing disease, but just treating it. Patients were getting sicker and the healthcare system in which she was working just didn’t seem right to her. So she decided it was time to help patients in a different way and became certified in functional medicine. With that new knowledge and passion, she also decided it was time to teach others how to prevent disease, for their health and the health of their patients.

Kerry is now seeing patients her way by getting to the root of the problem and finding a way to help them get better, without just band-aiding the issues. I know firsthand how Kerry can help with many ailments and can’t speak highly enough of her compassion and knowledge for helping others. She is a great educator, for her patients and her students.

LINKS

Kerry’s website www.drkimwellness.org

Follow Kerry’s journey on Instagram and LinkedIn.

Alex Whitefield knows what it’s like to be an exhausted bedside nurse. It isn’t ok for nurses to do the work that they do without a break away from their patients. So he decided to change that. Listen this week to hear what Alex is working on to help manage the complexities of scheduling our breaks.

Alex Whitefield was an ER nurse before becoming a nurse leader. During the time he was working at the bedside, he realized how important it was that nurses needed their breaks so that they could come back and care for their patients. Once he became a manager, he saw how complex it can be to schedule an entire unit of nurses to get their breaks without missing anyone. So he developed Breakalgo, as in break algorithm, so that if it wasn’t a good time for a nurse to take a break, they wouldn’t get lost in the chaos.

Alex Whitefield cares for the nurses he manages and it is clear when we discuss the importance of nurses caring for themselves. He has taken it upon himself to create a workplace that leads to caring for each other as well. It is nurse leaders like Alex that will change the landscape of the nursing profession.

LINKS

Find the Breakalago tool here www.breakalgo.com

Follow Alex’s journey on LinkedIn

Ryan George, an experienced ICU nurse, offers a candid account of his decision to leave his job due to workplace bullying, ultimately leading him to exit the nursing profession altogether. As a gay man in a predominantly female field, Ryan sheds light on the reality of toxic workplace dynamics, particularly the "mean girls" phenomenon. Despite his proficiency as a nurse and dedication to teaching, Ryan found himself targeted and uncomfortable in his work environment. He emphasizes the importance of kindness, support, and camaraderie among nurses, advocating for a healthier workplace culture. Ryan's experience underscores the toll of toxic environments on both healthcare professionals and patient care, urging for a more compassionate and supportive approach within the nursing community.

Welcome back to Don't Eat Your Young, the podcast that delves into the inspiring stories and impactful work of individuals shaping the landscape of healthcare. In this episode, we shine a spotlight on Susan B. Davis, widely known as the Rescue RN, who has become a leading figure in cardiac arrest awareness, CPR training, and AED preparedness within communities.

Susan B. Davis has dedicated her career to transforming public understanding and response to cardiac emergencies. In the hospital setting, Susan identified a critical gap in the preparedness of healthcare professionals to manage in-hospital cardiac arrests effectively. This insight led her to establish CodePRep, an innovative mock code training program designed to enhance the competency and readiness of hospital staff. Susan's impact extends into her role as the Resuscitation Education Manager for a prominent healthcare system in Southwest Florida. In this capacity, she oversees the development and implementation of all things related to resuscitation for healthcare professionals. Her leadership ensures that the system's staff are current with the latest cardiac care protocols and proficient in their application, ultimately enhancing patient survival rates and setting new standards in resuscitation education. Susan’s visionary approach and unwavering dedication have established her as a distinguished figure in resuscitation preparedness and response.

LINKS

• Find the CodePRep Workshop here www.rescuern.com.
• Book Rescue RN for speaking events here www.rescuern.com.
• Follow Susan's journey on LinkedIn and YouTube.

Maggie Ortiz, a seasoned nurse with over 23 years of experience, brings a wealth of expertise to the nursing community. Having worked in diverse roles, including bedside nursing, administration, and as a Texas Board of Nursing investigator, Maggie is well-versed in protecting nurses from litigation. As the Founder of Advocates for Nurses, she educates fellow nurses on navigating challenges, shares valuable tips on self-protection, and offers her connection for nurses dealing with licensing issues.

Maggie returns this season to share insights into how nurses can protect themselves and provides her personal contact number to those facing potential issues regarding their license. She also teaches courses to empower nurses in safeguarding themselves while caring for patients.

Mel Cortez has been a nurse for 15 years, and an entrepreneur for many of those years. She noticed a gap in nursing and took action. In this episode, she shares her experience facing a violent patient in a community hospital, leading her to initiate a "ground-up" approach to empower nurses. Collaborating with military friends, Mel developed Cortex Gold, a comprehensive training program for healthcare professionals to prevent and handle violence. Discover how Mel is making workplaces safer and explore Cortex Gold for essential knowledge in preventing harm.

Mel Cortez is making the workplace a safer place. If you are threatened by violence or want the knowledge to prevent harm to yourself, your coworkers or your patients, Cortex Gold is something to check out.

Jill Brandl was an RN who worked to become a Holistic Psych Mental Health Nurse Practitioner. Despite her education in mental health, Jill needed help with her own burnout from her years in healthcare, as well as dealing with trauma outside of her job. After what she describes as “total burnout”, Jill decided it was time to put herself first and begin the journey to a more healthy life. She stepped away from her job to focus on helping herself so she could continue to help others.

Jill says that the mental health of nurses is her passion now. She says that step one to healing is admitting that things have to change and not allowing shame to get in the way of asking for help. Nurses have been taught to think that burnout just goes with the territory and we should just suck it up and move through the exhaustion and difficulty of caring for others. Jill tells us that we must set boundaries, know our worth as people, and not get wrapped up in how we may be perceived if we put ourselves first.

Jill now offers help to nurses who are going through burnout or mental health issues. She utilizes evidence-based modalities to help others begin to heal themselves. Jill helps others by using mind-body healing and neuroscience-based flow-state coaching. She also focuses on the root cause of mental health, so that clients can make lasting changes.

With the explosion of cannabis use in the U.S., Alicia Schaal saw a gap in knowledge for healthcare professionals. Without much evidence-based information to find, she decided to educate herself so she could share that knowledge with others, namely the nurses and physicians that were unsure how cannabis impacts the our patients and the care that we deliver.

Alicia is currently taking pharmacology and other related courses to arm herself with the most up to date research. She is also a certified Cannabis Nurse in Minnesota. She recently  formed Midwest Cannabis Professionals, a consulting and education business. On her website, her goal is to “help improve your quality of life with medical cannabis”. Anyone can reach out to her for information so that they can make educated decisions for their own care. She also works with healthcare professionals so that they may feel more comfortable making decisions about their patient’s care regarding cannabis use. 

Alicia is very knowledgeable when it comes to cannabis and if she doesn’t know the answer to a question, you can bet that she will find the answer to best help her customers. This is a much needed service in a time when there is such little information. Alicia is certainly moving us in the right direction.

Links:

Alicia's website midwestcannabisprofessionals.com.

Follow Alice's journey on LinkedIn.

Being a nurse was the easy part compared to being a patient. Natalie D'Itri was an educator and was involved in oncology research as an RN. What she didn't anticipate was being a patient and learning how to navigate the healthcare system in a totally different capacity. In this week's episode, Beth talks with Natalie about her journey with breast cancer, from both perspectives – patient and nurse.

Last season, we heard from Natalie as the podcast host of CareerWise Nurse. This season, she returns to discuss her life after a breast cancer diagnosis. From this experience, Natalie has started a podcast called Breast Cancer Life, where you can hear her personal story about what she endured from diagnosis through her treatment.

Natalie approaches this episode with humility, education, and newfound compassion for the patients going through the same experiences she has endured. Check out her podcast to learn more about her story. 

Links:

• Listen to the Breast Cancer Life podcast here.
• Follow Natalie's journey on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest.

Welcome back to Season Four of "Don't Eat Your Young"! I'm your host, Beth Quass, and I am beyond excited to be back recording for this season. A huge thank you to all you amazing listeners who keep coming back to hear the incredible stories from nurses just like you.

I'm incredibly grateful for the nurses who join me on the show, sharing their expertise, vulnerabilities, and experiences in this challenging profession. We all know how tough it is in healthcare right now, especially for nurses. That's why this season, I've brought on guests who I hope will inspire us all – whether it's to find renewed passion in our work, persevere through the challenges, or make the courageous decision to leave if that's what's best for our well-being. Because at the end of the day, we all want to be healthy and able to care for others, including ourselves.

If you're interested in being a guest on the show, please reach out to me at beth@donteatyouryoung.com.

Links:

• Follow me on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram.