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- The Handoff - Issue #20
The Handoff - Issue #20
Quick and dirty nursing news that’s worth sharing

Hello fellow Nurse, this is your weekly handoff. Some quick and dirty nursing news that’s worth sharing. Enjoy!

Something worth fighting for
Yesterday, June 15th, 400 members of ANA approached congress at the US capital to fight for America’s nurses. ANA is not only fighting congress for safe staffing, but also fighting for those guidelines to be piloted by actual direct care nurses (what a concept, right?). ANA Chief Nursing Officer Debbie Hatmaker, PhD, RN, FAAN said “Ultimately the nurse staffing crisis requires a national dialogue and ongoing collaboration between nurses, Congressional leaders and other key stakeholders to support our nursing workforce, our patients, and our nation’s health and well-being.” ANA is also focusing in on removing mandatory overtime rules. AND working to have Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OHSA) to issue a national health care workplace violence standard.
Something eerie
At this point, I feel like this could be a true crime blog because I am yet again reporting on a murder! This article has a true crime drama plot twist when retired detective Tim Braun starts raising questions on the nurse murderer, Heather Pressdee, that we covered prior. If you are unfamiliar with the name Tim Braun, you are surely familiar with the name Charles Cullen. Cullen is the notorious nurse serial killer who admitted to killing 29 patients (the book/movie Good Nurse may ring even more of a bell). Tim Braun was one of the detectives who helped catch and stop Cullen. So in this drama show, that is real life, Braun is questioning whether this PA nurse only killed two people. Why? Because she and Cullen have an awful lot in common. The largest similarity being that Cullen covered 11 hospitals over 16 years. You’ll never guess how many hospitals and nursing facilities Pressdee covered over only 10 years- 11. The investigation is still ongoing and they have not responded to Braun’s theory, but don’t you worry- I’ll be checking in on this for updates!
Something to help a traveler
I recently came across a blog site titled the “Gypsy Nurse” and it is essentially a compilation of guides for travel nurses. There’s guides from first travel assignment tips to location specific guides and even one for the RV travel nurse. The travel nurse world can be intimidating (especially if you were like me and your first contract was in the middle of a pandemic), so it’s nice to have a virtual group supporting you. This guide is a great in my opinion, there’s a ton of helpful tips. My list of life balance tips likely wouldn’t have made the cut though as a lot of my advice would include drinking some wine at the end of a three in a row.
If you liked this newsletter please share with your friends. Which bullet is your favorite? What do you want more or less of? Other suggestions? Email me and let me know.