Nursing student with Brittle Bone Disease (OI) and her service dog from CCI will graduate from the University of Tampa

      

Hannah Dineen reported the following for 10Tampa Bay.com:

"Tampa native and University of Tampa nursing student Leigh Dittman is poised to graduate in May with honors. It's a credit to her studiousness and grit, and also to her loyal service dog, Nerf." 

"He is with me every day. He goes with me to every class," said Leigh of Nerf." 

"After sitting through lectures and countless hours of studying at the University of Tampa, Nerf has more than earned the title of "honorary nursing student".

Read more about Leigh and Nerf by clicking the  link below.

Congratulations to both of you!

Donna

https://www.wtsp.com/article/news/education/university-of-tampa-service-dog-honorary-nursing-student/67-ae0b905e-5005-4ca9-a992-88496b96c93f?fbclid=IwAR2Obihp2dXbAyvUIJtLZs9EZrZ5pkaPRxzaGpBEuY4-nJUIpOJiBZO_r94

5 Lessons learned from the RaDonda Vaught case from Nurse attorney Lorie Brown

 

Lorie Brown, RN, MN, JD

Nurse attorney, Lorie Brown is the founder of EmpoweredNurses.org. In the following YouTube Channel video, she shares some excellent lessons learned from the RaDonda Vaught case. These lessons apply to all nurses. 

New nurses, veteran nurses, nursing students....we all need to listen! Learn more about insurance and how to protect your freedom and your nursing license by clicking on the link below.

Cheers!

Donna

https://empowerednurses.org/top-5-lessons-learned-from-radonda-vaughts-situation/?fbclid=IwAR3rPNYYeLqC6G4MXEmEYUtU-I5NXgWN0caCxrZ0h4FAgOJcS60w1bqnapQ

Listen up nurses with disabilities: You could be the next RaDonda Vaught

                                                                           RaDonda Vaught, BSN

By now, most nurses know about the tragic story surrounding RaDonda Vaught, the Tennessee nurse found guilty of criminally negligent homicide in the death of patient. She was criminally prosecuted for a medical error.

Long story short, RaDonda Vaught gave a patient the wrong medication, a human error, and the patient sadly died.

RaDonda came forward and told the truth. Now, she faces three to six years in prison on the gross neglect conviction and one to two years on the criminally negligent homicide conviction. She will be sentenced on May 13, 2022.

Vanderbilt Hospital threw RaDonda under the bus, and she stood alone. This action has outraged many nurses, and some have opted to leave their positions. 

What happened to hospital back up systems that should have prevented this? The hospital had more than a heavy burden of responsibility for the deadly errors, but  charges were only brought against the nurse.

The American Nurses Association stated, 

"Today a jury convicted former Vanderbilt University Medical Center #nurse RaDonda Vaught. We are deeply distressed by this verdict and the harmful ramifications of criminalizing the honest reporting of mistakes. Full Statement: https://bit.ly/3DcNDZG."

This is a sad time and wake up call for all nurses. 

We feel for the patient and the family. They certainly deserve justice, but sending a nurse to jail is not the answer.

Please share your thoughts and respectful comments. RaDonda has handled this with grace and poise. That is the least we can give her now.

Donna

Seeking Registered Nurses with invisible disabilities for a research study

 

Hannah Cvancara, RN, BSN working to become first pre-service amputee Navy Nurse

                                                              Hannah Cvancara, RN, BSN 

Geoff Ziezulewicz wrote a piece for the Navy Times about a civilian nurse trying to become the first pre-service amputee to join the Navy.

"Hannah Cvancara was born with a birth defect called fibular hemimelia that resulted in her left leg never growing correctly and the amputation of her left foot when she was just a year old.

But 25 years later, she hasn’t let her reliance on a prosthetic leg stop her from living a full and physical life that includes surfing, rock climbing and long shifts on her feet as a civilian nurse."

Read more about Hannah at:

 https://www.navytimes.com/news/your-navy/2022/02/09/meet-the-civilian-nurse-trying-to-become-the-first-pre-service-amputee-to-join-the-navy/?fbclid=IwAR2xiaBtA5JwitiU6LDxPz_0AvfWVCGA7h_svlBvkOF-s4Z-fnN2U4JX2RE

Additional information about her can be found at:

A local nurse's dream is to join the Navy, and she can pass the physical test. But the Navy says they can't accept people with a prosthetic leg | The Spokesman-Review

Navy Regulations Discriminate Against Disabled People - One Nurse Is Fighting To Change That (forbes.com)

Cheers!

Donna

Top 5 blog posts about nurses with disabilities in 2021

Let's take a look back on 2021!  Here are the top 5 Exceptional Nurse blog posts about nurses with disabilities. 

Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and a wheelchair didn't stop Ryann Kress, BS, RN......she got the job! 

“Two years of ‘no.’ Two years of nobody wanted to take a chance on me, being seen as a liability, or just being instantly Googled, they would find my name, see my wheelchair and say absolutely not,” said Kress.

https://exceptionalnurse.blogspot.com/2021/05/ehlers-danlos-syndrome-and-wheelchair.html

Nursing on the spectrum: What nurses with autism want you to know           "My name is Jackie Anne.  I am in my early 30s and I am a nurse.  I may have even been your nurse.  Unknown to you, and many I work side by side with daily, I also have autism."

https://exceptionalnurse.blogspot.com/2021/01/nursing-on-spectrum-what-nurses-with.html

Nurse practitioner who stutters helps others from the front lines of Covid-19

"Roisin McManus, a Nurse Practitioner (NP) who stutters, joins Chaya Goldstein to provide a first hand perspective from the front lines of COVID-19.

https://exceptionalnurse.blogspot.com/2021/01/nurse-practitioner-who-stutters-helps.html

ExceptionalNurse.com is honored to announce the winners for 2021!!!        

Abigail Buker from Ewing, New Jersey will be attending the College of New Jersey. And, Erica Flowers from Andover, Massachusetts will be attending the University of South Carolina.

https://exceptionalnurse.blogspot.com/2021/08/nursing-students-with-disabilities.html

Dr. Carolyn Burr, Nurse practitioner pioneer in stopping mother-to-child transmission of HIV/AIDS 

"Dr. Carolyn Keith Burr, a pediatric nurse practitioner and educator who helped save the lives of tens of thousands of people around the world through her work on the prevention of HIV/AIDS in pregnant women and children, died on Friday, October 30, 2020 at Chilton Hospital in New Jersey. She was 71."

https://exceptionalnurse.blogspot.com/2021/04/dr-carolyn-burr-nurse-practitioner.html

Cheers and Happy New Year!

Donna

In remembrance of Carolyn Berry McKinzie, LPN, a truly exceptional nurse

Carolyn was one of the Exceptional Nurse pioneer supporters. An avid writer, she loved her patients, family and friends. She served as a mentor to countless nurses and nursing student amputees.

She wrote honestly in at times bone raw accounts of her amputation and the journey back to nursing practice and a full life. The following is one example of her work.

"In 2008, I took a job as a dialysis nurse at my local hospital.  I never thought I would get more out of that job than what I put in, but we have many amputee patients and I was able to bond with them in a very special way.  I don’t hesitate to share my story with them.  It’s important for them to see that life goes on despite misfortune.  I can’t work a 10 hour shift like everybody else does, but I can keep up with them while I am there.  I have become a certified amputee peer visitor and I speak to people about my journey whenever the opportunity arises.   I know that I am a much better nurse now than I ever was.  The most valuable lesson I have learned is that tough times don’t last, but tough people do" (McKinzie, 2014, p.161).

We lost a good one. Carolyn, listen up! Your work will continue! 

Rest in peace.

With love,

Donna

To contribute to the Carolyn Berry McKinzie Scholarship to be awarded to a nursing student with an amputation, click on this link: http://www.exceptionalnurse.com/makeadonation.php

Her obituary can be read at:

 https://www.centralmaine.com/2021/12/05/obituarycarolyn-m-berry-mckinzie/

Reference

McKinzie, C. (2014). Tough times don’t last, but tough people do: Nursing after a lower limb amputation (chapter 13). In D. Maheady, The Exceptional Nurse: Tales from the trenches of truly resilient nurses working with disabilities. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. 

                                                      Additional publications

UPS AND DOWNS ~ Carolyn McKinzie, LPN, RBKA (abledamputees.org)

https://exceptionalnurse.blogspot.com/2016/06/moving-forward-with-disability.html

Amputee Nurse Consultant/Carolyn McKinzie, LPN, RBKA

THE DATING GAME: She Said, He Said - Amplitude (livingwithamplitude.com)