Who doesn't remember the old adage, "April Showers Bring May Flowers" as a way of explaining the wet weather we often have in April. What I didn't understand when I was little was why I was sneezing so much! Now that I'm, ahem, 'more mature,' I have a much better...

Even if you're not a college basketball fan — whether men's or women's — it's hard not to know that March is tournament time — also known as 'March Madness.' The term 'March Madness' has been linked to basketball since 1939, but March has also been associated with...

If you’ve not had the need to visit or be admitted to a hospital in the last three years, the information in this issue of The Flame may surprise you. Regardless, I hope it disturbs you and urges you to action. Recently, a new survey about increasing violence against...

Happy New Year!!! I'm not sure if it is a good sign or a bad sign that the first time I heard about "Dry January" was one week ago! Apparently, Dry January began in 2012 as an initiative by Alcohol Change UK, a British non-profit, to 'ditch the hangover, reduce the...

For many years as a young adult, I greeted the winter holiday season with trepidation. It took many years to figure out that I was the one in charge of managing my 'holiday' stress. But then again, I have never been hospitalized during Christmas. That brings a whole...

November brings the holiday of Thanksgiving and with it, reminders for us all to give thanks for the blessings in our lives, however small. Besides my friends, family, good health and chocolate chip cookies, I am most grateful for my nursing colleagues at Guardian...

I think we can all agree on two things: Social media is a big part of kid's lives (as well as adults). Back in 2018, the Pew Research Center found that 97% of nearly 750 teenagers used a social media platform. I would dare to say that in 2023, if a child has a smart...

Only in Philadelphia could a major road re-opening be celebrated by all of the pro teams' mascots riding on a firetruck, but I bet ALL of us were cheering for the fantastic work that our building trades' union members did 24/7 on reopening Interstate 95. What could...

It's June! And that means besides being Pride month, and Men's Health Month, it's also Alzheimer’s and Brain Awareness Month. Worldwide, more than 55 million people are living with Alzheimer's and other dementias. Depending on the type of dementia (and there could be...

We are less than two weeks away from Memorial Day, the unofficial start of the summer season. Just this past weekend, I attended a Mothers' Day barbeque and enjoyed a variety of salads, meats, fruit and desserts. Though the outdoor temperature was in the low 70's, I...

As a group of my colleagues at Guardian Nurses headed to our parking lot last week, we all noticed the pollen that had settled on our cars in just eight hours. No wonder so many of us have been sneezing and blowing our noses! And just this past weekend, I spent some...

There are countless stories that we share at Guardian Nurses. Stories of our patients and their families, of nurses, of providers like nurse practitioners and physicians, and of other members of our big, confusing healthcare system. Given our role in our patients'...