Tuesday, September 30, 2025

Claudia I. Martinez, MD has an important message for health care providers with disabilities


"The otoscope and ophthalmoscope are two tools I haven’t been able to use. The residual weakness in my hands from my stroke still lingers and my grip strength is poor. Bc of this I drop everything I carry in my right hand and often those I carry in my left hand as well."

"Being able to see into my patient’s ears, mouth and eyes is very important. In therapy we often tie my hand with an ace bandage wrap so I won’t drop what I’m holding, but needing another person to follow me and literally tie my hand to each tool for me while I’m seeing each patient just isn’t practical. Bc of @eazyhold I’m now able to get this same effect and can use these tools on my own."

"The world isn’t built for individuals with a disability, but thanks to adaptive equipment such as @eazyhold we have a chance to make things around us accessible and not allow our disability to handicap us in every aspect of our lives."

https://www.instagram.com/claudiaimartinez/


Cheers!

Donna

Friday, September 19, 2025

“I am a nurse: Color me Exceptional!” Introduction of Japanese version


 By Nozomi Kawabata RN, BSN, MSN, BE, living with * * disorder

I translated this picture book in 2024.
Above illustration of the five nurses is a part of the cover of the coloring book.

この記事は米国の著者、読者とのコミュニケーションのために作っています

In a nutshell, this is a picture book from the US based on real stories, featuring illustration of more than 20 nurses with various disabilities and diseases working in various clinical settings. The English version was published by Amazon in 2019.

This introductory video (5 min 35 sec) for the coloring book was created by Mameko, a nurse living with ASD and YouTuber.
Click below for the Japanese introductory video for the coloring book

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDIkVCIcrLM&t=5s

For more detailed information about the coloring book, please visit the following Japanese website. It includes the names of the disabilities and diseases that appear in the book, a list of occupations and workplaces where nurses are active in the United States, and Japanese explanations of the nurses who served as models.

 まれかん、障害のある看護師たち - 塗り絵の本

Now, regarding the background of translating this picture book, the author, Dr. Donna Carol Maheady, who is a nurse and nurse educator, a founder
of www.exceptionalnurse.com ( a nonprofit organization supporting nurses and nursing students with disabilities in the United States). She has also published three collections of narratives by nurses with disAbilities. I had to resign from my position as a ward nurse at a leprosy sanatorium due to disability-related issues, and a few months later, while attending a vocational rehabilitation center, I came across these books, which were a great source of comfort to me. I have now completed the translation, but due to various circumstances, the Japanese edition has not yet been published. I am determined to explore ways to utilize the manuscript...

Amidst this situation, we decided to publish this coloring book in Japan first. We hope that creativity and imagination for a society where diverse nurses can play an active role will spread in Japan as well. The original title of the coloring book is “I am a nurse: Color me Exceptional!”, which is the name of the supporting NPO. The word “exceptional” is difficult to translate into Japanese, and there are various translations in the dictionary, such as “rare,” “different from normal,” “unusual,” and “extremely excellent.” However, in consultation with the author, we decided to use only “I am a nurse!” as the title for the Japanese version of the coloring book, with the hope that nurses with disabilities and illnesses will soon be accepted as normal.

One of the title of Dr. Maheady's narrative collection, Exceptional Nurse, has been translated as “rare nurse.” However, in the not-too-distant future, I hope that nurses will become as commonplace as air in a nursing world that does not discriminate against people with disabilities (at least in theory... laugh), and that this project will be completed with the achievement of disability employment rates in the nursing field.

For nurses who are also patients, being able to search in their native language and immediately read stories and thoughts shared by their peers is extremely important, both in their work and in their daily lives. While there are excellent Japanese books and articles written by nurses who are also patients, there is a clear need for more information that is easily accessible online at any time.

Next, we would like to introduce the Japanese website titled “Stories of Nurses with Disabilities” (NPO Health and Illness Narratives DIPEx Japan), which features interviews with 20 nursing students and healthcare professionals aged 20 to 70 who have illnesses or disabilities.(Partial release beginning in 2025) Additionally, this website aims not only to provide information and emotional support for patients and those directly affected but also to serve as a resource for specialized education for healthcare professionals, public lectures, and academic research.

“Narratives of Nurses with Disabilities.” (Japanese Sites)

障害ナースの語りwww.dipex-j.org

In translating the coloring book, we have received advice from Ms. Yoko Setoyama, a nurse who is a representative of this JPN database “Narratives of Nurses with Disabilities.”

Thank you very much for reading this far.
Click here to  go to sales page of JPN coloring book on Amazon.co.jp.

Proceeds from the sale of the book will go to www.exceptionalnurse.com to provide scholarships for nursing students with disabilities.

Additionally, this article was inspired by a series of master's thesis submissions by Ms. Natsuko, a nurse with mid-life visual impairment  who works as a consultation support specialist alongside a guide dog. I would like to express my deepest gratitude to Ms. Natsuko for providing the inspiration to begin writing this article.

P.S.
Here is Kawabata's self-introduction in English.

#創作大賞2025

【日本語版】https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B0DBR9DVRK

Originally published on No+e: https://note.com/marekan2022/n/nadacd31eed1a

With thanks to Nozomi Kawabata RN and so many others for helping us bring this project to life!

Donna


Thursday, September 4, 2025

Amanda Biederman, RN, BSN a nurse with Cystic Fibrosis


 The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation shared the following:

"Amanda grew up in the mountains of Southern California and was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis when she was 4 years old. She has her Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing and has been an oncology nurse for 10 years. After 4 years of professional life, Amanda had to stop working due to progression into advanced CF lung disease at age 27. On January 2, 2019, Amanda had a double-lung transplant, and later the same year was diagnosed with post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder (PTLD), a post-transplant form of cancer."

"Today, Amanda is cancer free and back to work as a nurse. She is passionate about advocacy for chronic illness and mental health, volunteers with Donate Life NW as an educator in schools and hopes to grow as a writer to empower others facing hardships. Connect with Amanda on Instagram @beautyforashes05."

https://www.cff.org/author/amanda-biederman

Read more at:

https://www.cff.org/community-posts/2023-04/what-ive-learned-about-self-advocacy-person-cf-and-nurse

Cheers!

Donna


Monday, July 28, 2025

Britny Bensman, RN pens new book celebrating Deaf and hard-of-hearing healthcare professionals

 


I am excited to share publication of a new book for children written by Britney Bensman, RN, founder of DeafMed.

We Hear Different. We Care the Same.

This book celebrates the Deaf and hard-of-hearing community by showing the reader that people who are Deaf or hard of hearing can become a wide range of healthcare professionals. In addition to nurses and doctors, people can become veterinarians, veterinarian technicians, dentists,  dental hygienists and athletic trainers and provide compassionate care to everyone.

Preorders are available until August 2nd!

🛒 Available on the Deafmed website and Etsy. 

DeafMed’s motto: Change your can’t to can.

Website: https://www.thedeafmed.com/shop/p/we-hear-different-we-care-the-same

Etsy: https://thedeafmedshop.etsy.com/listing/4341871897

 

Cheers!

Donna


Thursday, July 10, 2025

A nurse's story of advocacy and resilience living with multiple sclerosis and cognitive impairment

 

Living with multiple sclerosis can be a challenge in and of itself. For some people, multiple sclerosis also can be a factor in other issues, such as mild cognitive impairment and, later, dementia. This was the case for SuAnn Cobb, a Tennessee-based pediatric nurse.

Cobb started noticing problems with her memory several years before she eventually retired. After retirement, as she continued having problems with word-finding, she pressed her neurologist for testing. 

These tests confirmed the connection between Cobb’s mild cognitive impairment and her multiple sclerosis. Now, several years after her diagnosis, she is passionate about spreading the message that those with memory loss can lead rich and satisfying lives. She has become actively involved in support groups for MCI, and she’s taken on a leadership role as chair of the board of directors for a local support group called Sharing Experiences Together. She also co-produces and co-hosts the podcast Living Our Best With Memory Loss, where she shares her experiences and offers insights to others facing similar challenges. 

Cobb recently joined Being Patient video journalist Mark Niu in a conversation about her diagnosis journey and her work advocating for others living with memory loss.

 Read more about Suanne Cobb at https://www.beingpatient.com/nurse-turns-to-advocacy-ms-mci/

And listen to her story and experiences at https://youtu.be/n4Md2LO2Eb8

Cheers!

Donna

Saturday, June 28, 2025

Turning personal experience with IBD/Ulcerative Colitis into becoming a nurse


 “People ask me what I remember about being inpatient as long as I was, and while the complications, transfusions, and procedures are things I won’t forget, what I really remember are the nurses sitting in my room and simply talking with me, or asking me about my friends and my basketball team. Nobody else wanted to talk about that, and they made me feel at home in an environment that was anything but. Nurses have a way with their patients in which they make them feel safe. I was the type of patient to ask countless questions about the medicine, procedures, and other nursing interventions just because I was curious. The nurses smiled and answered them all patiently. I sat in that hospital bed, extremely sick and facing a long road to recovery, and I told myself I was going to be a nurse one day.”

Read more about Sarah Kate DelaCourt at:

https://www.crohnscolitisfoundation.org/blog/becoming-a-nurse-turning-personal-experience-a-career

Cheers!

Donna

Saturday, May 31, 2025

Nurse Blake, a nursing rock star, turned his conversion therapy trauma into comedy

 
"Since I was young, my parents always steered me toward healthcare. There was never another option for me. Luckily, as I got older and more comfortable in who I am, I found my own reason to get into healthcare: helping the LGBTQ community. I wanted to be a voice and provider for this community because I didn't have one growing up." 

"While I studied to become a nurse, I was experiencing a whole new realm of anxiety and mental-health issues. So, I started creating funny videos on TikTok to feel relief, and the response was incredible. I realized that I could build a community of people who have shared struggles by making them laugh. I became "Nurse Blake" on TikTok, and my community has now reached 900,000 followers." 

"My followers love that my conversion therapy didn't work. Honestly, my parents should get a refund." 

 Read more about Nurse Blake at:

I Was Sent to Conversion Therapy As a Teen and Still Have Trauma - Business Insider

https://www.instagram.com/nurse.blake/

Nurse Blake · But Did You Die? Comedy Tour · Tik Tok Nurse Comedy – Nurse Blake LLC

Nurse Blake - YouTube

Meet a Champion of Nursing Diversity: Blake Lynch, AKA Nurse Blake - Minority Nurse

Cheers!

Donna