Nurses Week: A Pulse@ChathamU Collection
May 6th through May 12th is Nurses Week! Though Chatham has always valued our nursing faculty, students, and staff, this past year has highlighted the critical importance of those in the nursing profession, not only as frontline workers in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but as thought-leaders on subjects like community health, climate change, and more. Celebrate Nurses Week with us as we look back on some of our favorite Pulse@ChathamU articles featuring ChathamU’s nurses—
Nurses on Campus
Meet some of the Nursing faculty around ChathamU— from welcoming new Assistant Professor of Nursing Dr. Lorrie Birkholz, DNP who joined us in 2020, to getting to know RN-BSN Program Coordinator and Assistant Professor of Nursing Julie Slade, DNP, RN.
And just to prove that nurses tend to be the busiest people we know, check out this profile of current nursing student Aaliyah Thomas— Aaliyah is the Chatham Student Government president for the Class of 2024, a member of the Women’s Swim Team, a member of the Black Student Union, and a published author!
Nurses in the Community
Scharmaine Baker-Lawson DNP ’08’s creation, Nola the Nurse
Scharmaine Baker-Lawson, DNP ‘08 brought her skills into the community quite literally, starting out as a travel nurse and eventually building her own house call practice. After Hurricane Katrina devastated her hometown of New Orleans, her practice multiplied and Baker-Lawson became an outspoken advocate for better and more accessible healthcare in Louisiana. She sought a DNP from Chatham in order to make a bigger impact in the healthcare arena, created “The Housecall Course” to train other nurse practitioners in starting house call practices… and did we mention, authored several children’s books about nursing featuring Nola the Nurse?
Christine Bingman, DNP ‘20
Christine Bingman, DNP ‘20 graduated from Chatham’s Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) program at the start of the Coronavirus pandemic, and immediately began working to create risk-mitigating systems for her patients and coworkers. Her experiences on the front lines— from intubating a COVID patient to the importance of communication within and outside healthcare— will stick with us for a long time.
Nurses Tackling the Issues
Assistant Professor and Practice Experience Coordinator of Chatham’s nursing programs Jennifer Wasco, DNP, RN
Nurses face challenges head-on, even outside the healthcare setting. Being an advocate of community health, it’s no wonder that Assistant Professor and Practice Experience Coordinator of Chatham’s nursing programs Jennifer Wasco, DNP, RN has written opinion pieces about the role of nursing in discussions of sustainability— citing spikes in respiratory illnesses from poor air quality, or diseases related to food insecurity, vector-borne illnesses, and other climate change-exacerbated conditions. She’s also weighed in on the evolving role of women in the field of nursing, challenging women to take on leadership roles and continue their education.
Professor of Nursing Kathleen Spadaro, PhD, PMHCNS, RN
With any profession comes a certain degree of burnout, but the COVID-19 pandemic has taxed our healthcare professionals harder than most. Professor of Nursing Kathleen Spadaro, PhD, PMHCNS, RN and Psychiatric Clinical Nurse Specialist developed a mental health webinar for nurses called “Effective Tools for Practicing Self-Compassion & Self-Care in the Time of COVID-19.” This free presentation for nurses provides ample tools for addressing mental health challenges, but can be more broadly applied to anyone struggling with stress or anxiety. This article distills some of Spadaro’s teachings so that anyone can incorporate them into a personal self-care toolkit.
Do you want to make a difference in your community like the amazing professionals above? Chatham has a host of nursing options:
Undergraduate Degrees:
Graduate Degrees and Certificates:
We hope you take some time this week to thank a nurse in your life for their invaluable work. Check out this article if you’re looking for suggestions on how best to celebrate nurses— written for Nurses Week of May 2020, it still contains plenty of helpful ideas to shout out your appreciation for these essential healthcare workers.
