SafeNClear "The Communicator Mask": A continuing education program for nurses

Want to learn more about The Communicator Mask and earn 1.0 ceu? Here is your chance to learn from the creator of the mask, Dr. Anne McIntosh, President of SafeNClear!

Upon completion of this self-paced continuing education program, the participant will be able to:

Identify needs of patients with hearing loss

Recognize the importance of facial expressions for visual communicators

Identify ways to avoid muffled speech

List common characteristics of sign language users 

Compare and contrast masks with clear windows to 

        traditional masks.

Dr. Anne McIntosh has a BA in Speech Communication from UNC Chapel Hill, an MA in Interpersonal Communication from University of Montana at Missoula and a PhD in Communication Sciences and Disorders from University of Texas at Austin.

•ExceptionalNurse.com is a State of California, Board of Nursing continuing education provider No. CEP14352

The cost of the program is $10.00 (click on Paypal link). Proceeds help to support our scholarships to nursing students with hearing loss. When payment is received you will receive a link to a power point presentation and other materials. 

•Please complete the Post-Test (a score of 80% is required to pass) and the course evaluation form and email both to ExceptionalNurse@aol.com.

•If a passing score is achieved, your certificate will be sent back via email.

Here's to clearer communication!

Donna

Nurses with disabilities: Learning to write with your non-dominant hand

A member of a group of disabled nurses asked fellow nurses with disabilities for suggestions on how to learn to write with your non-dominant hand. Nurses may struggle with this challenge from a tremor disorder or following a stroke, amputation, injury, arthritis, or other disabling condition. These are some of the suggestions offered by the group. With your non-dominant hand:

Practice, practice, practice 
Trace letters and shapes in a children's book.

Be persistent 
Color with crayons.

Keep a sense of humor
 Do crossword puzzles to practice block printing.

Be determined 
Write big and slowly.

Practice

 Use a white board which allows for easy erasing/correction. 

Don't give up!

 Join an online group of people with a similar challenge.

Be patient with yourself 

Keep a journal of your writing for a record of your progress.

Practice

 Explore YouTube for helpful videos.

Remember you are a nurse...you got this one!!

Cheers!

Donna

Honda Classic: Guess the number of birdies and you could win a car and help the Exceptional Nurse scholarship program

Hello all friends and supporters!

Make a $20.00 donation and guess the number of birdies at the Honda Classic. You could win a car and help the Exceptional Nurse scholarship program.

Make sure to click on the link to the Exceptional Nurse donation page:
https://www.thehondaclassic.com/honda-classic-cares/bfc/donate-charity/

With thanks in advance!!

Donna

CEU program: Teaching nursing students with disabilities: From student to practicing nurse

Teaching nursing students with disabilities: From student to practicing nurse

At the completion of this program, the learner will be able to:

Identify accommodations for a student with hearing loss.

Describe accommodation for student who uses a wheelchair.

List accommodations for a nursing student with vision loss.

Identify resources that can assist students with disabilities.

Develop a plan for a nursing student with a disability from student to practicing nurse.

This self-paced home study course includes a copy of the book:

"Leave No Nurse Behind: Nurses working with disAbilities" by Donna Maheady, APRN, EdD. 

ExceptionalNurse.com has been accredited as a provider of continuing education in nursing by the State of California BOard of Registered Nursing, BRN provider number 14352, for 4.5 contact hours. Learn more at:

http://www.exceptionalnurse.com/continuedu.php

Cheers!

Donna

For Black History Month we celebrate the achievements of nurses with disabilities

Cassandra Dobson, DNSc, MSN, BSN

As a child, Cassandra Dobson was hospitalized in a severe sickle cell crisis. She recalls talking with God and saying, Get me out of this big guy and I'll become a nurse! 

And, that is exactly what she did. She became a nurse, professor, author and tireless, award winning advocate for patients with sickle cell disease. She is also an advisory board member of the Queens Sickle Cell Advocacy Network. 
https://exceptionalnurse.blogspot.com/2016/09/sickle-cell-disease-results-in-promise.html

Andrea Dalzell, RN, BSN

Andrea Dalzell, Ms Wheelchair New York and disability advocate became a nurse. "Whether it was passing finals with the highest grades, receiving exemplary feedback from patients’ families or simply figuring out a way to accomplish her daily responsibilities from her chair, Dalzell has done more than just show she can be a nurse; she has proven she can be an excellent one."

https://exceptionalnurse.blogspot.com/2018/04/andrea-dalzell-ms-wheelchair-new-york.html

Kim Ketter, RN and Shaun Rivers, RN

Kim Ketter and Shaun Rivers are twins and nurses from Richmond, Virginia.They were diagnosed with cardiomyopathy and heart failure at 40 years of age. They both serve as Heart Failure Ambassadors with the American Heart Association. 
https://supportnetwork.heart.org/special-forums/heart-failure-ambassadors/kim-ketter-and-shaun-rivers/

Helen Lindsey, BSN

"Living life as a Quadruple amputee has been amazing. God is using me for this journey to help others. 25 years as a Amputee. Still standing."

Helen lost her arms and legs to bacterial meningitis but not her passion for helping others. She is an Army veteran who received her BSN from Winston-Salem State University.

She is working toward getting her nursing license back. Helen will be the first student in the state's nursing re-entry program to have a disability to this extent.

https://exceptionalnurse.blogspot.com/2017/05/helen-lindsey-bsn-quadruple-amputee.html

Kellye Nelson, RN, BS

Kellye Nelson was identified with a severe hearing loss at the age of two."With the help of hearing aids, she attended mainstream schools in Montgomery County, MD. Nelson received a master’s degree in Public Health from the University of Michigan and a B.S. in Nursing from Johns Hopkins University...Nelson is a Nurse Clinician at Johns Hopkins Hospital and also is a clinical instructor at the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing".
http://www.rit.edu/ntid/healthcare/stories/kellye-nelson

Latisha Anderson, RN

 Latisha Anderson calls herself an “RN on wheels,” a healer who uses a wheelchair, a caretaker who rolls among the sick. Skeptics told her she would never make it as a paraplegic nurse – turning patients, drawing blood and navigating the fast-moving stress of a hospital without a working set of legs. 
But Anderson surprised them. She finished nursing school. She found work in psychiatric units, a veterans hospital and a senior center. She earned her graduate degree online and drove to Arizona by herself, collecting her diploma while seated in her manual TiLite. Read more here: https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/article14510942.html#storylink=cpy

Bravo to all of these nurses!  They will be part of history...

Cheers!

Donna

Emily Elizabeth Parsons-an Exceptional Nurse in history

Emily Elizabeth Parsons (1824-1880)

Theophilus Parsons was a staunch Lincoln supporter. He initially opposed his 37- year- old daughter's desire to become a nurse. Emily Parsons' multiple handicaps (blind in one eye, partially deaf and unable to stand for prolonged periods of time) did not obstruct her resolve. 

She enrolled in nursing school at Massachusetts General Hospital at the outbreak of the American Civil War.

Later, she was appointed head of nursing on a riverboat at Vicksburg during the siege of the city. 

In 1863, after recovering from malaria, she became the nursing supervisor of a 2,500 bed field hospital in St. Louis, one of the most important posts given a woman during the Civil War.

Read more about this exceptional nurse at:
https://www.civilwarwomenblog.com/emily-parsons/

https://www.amazon.com/Fearless-Purpose-Blind-Abridged-Annotated/dp/1519059132

https://www.amazon.com/Medicine-Treasury-Literature-Ann-Carmichael/dp/0883639912/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1548431860&sr=1-1&keywords=medicine+a+treasure+of+art+and+literature+Carmichael

Cheers!

Donna

EnChroma glasses may help color blind nurses

Over the years, questions have been asked about accommodations for nurses who are colorblind. 
EnChroma glasses may be the answer. This is part of the company's "colorful" story.  

"It all started in 2002, in Santa Cruz, California during an Ultimate Frisbee game. Don McPherson, serial inventor and Ultimate Frisbee enthusiast with a PhD in glass science, wore a pair of specialty eyewear he invented to protect surgeons performing laser surgery. A teammate, having forgotten his sunglasses and noting Don’s stylish frames, tried them on."

“Dude! I can see the cones!” he called out in amazement. As it turns out, his friend was severely colorblind and couldn’t see the bright orange cones marking the game boundaries until that moment.This serendipitous event piqued his curiosity and sparked an idea that would eventually improve the lives of thousands."

"Dr. McPherson soon applied for a grant from the National Institutes of Health to design new lens technology for color blindness and partnered with Andrew Schmeder, a UC Berkeley-trained mathematician who helped crack the code behind the accidental discovery. The duo spent years perfecting the lens technology to create EnChroma, stylish optical grade glasses that reveal color as it is meant to be seen—pure, vibrant, and true to life."

"EnChroma, Inc., founded in 2010, is proudly based in Berkeley, California. Today, EnChroma offers a complete collection of high performance eyewear that combine the latest in color perception neuroscience and lens innovation to enhance vision for colorblind people around the world." 

For more information and testimonials, visit EnChroma at: https://enchroma.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7sbd7uzD-ec&feature=youtu.be

Cheers!

Donna