In the course of our work at Guardian Nurses, we often (ok, every day) have to deal with the federal healthcare privacy law called HIPAA. Since we are working on behalf of patients, we need to get their written authorization that we can speak with their clinical providers and request records from facilities. Patients easily…
Through the years of healthcare innovation and reform, even going as far back as the 1990's, one of the favorite rallying cries of administrators is delivering and offering "patient centered care." When I first heard the phrase, as a manager in an acute care hospital, I thought, "Um, isn't that what we WERE delivering?" I couldn't…
Recently, it seems like we've had a flurry of facilities whose staff has been unwilling, for one reason or another, to speak with our nurse advocates over the phone. Last week, I was asked to intervene in a case where our nurse advocate was having difficulty getting information DESPITE a signed authorization and consent on…
When I heard that the 19 y/o suspect had been apprehended and, because of his injuries, had been taken to the hospital, I thought, "Oh brother, God bless the hospital staff that will be treating and caring for him." Amidst all the public sentiment surrounding the terrible tragedy at the Boston Marathon, and the ensuing…
I love Nurses' Week. It is only fitting that every year since 1954, the 100th anniversary of Florence Nightingales' mission to the Crimean War, the nursing community is celebrated. Nurses' WEEK begins on May 6th (since 1982) and runs the full week, ending on May 12th, Florence Nightingale's birthday. I love Nurses' Week and I…
There I sat, amidst close to 6,000 women attendees at the Pennsylvania Conference for Women, listening to Arianna Huffington give her keynote presentation during lunch. What a pleasant surprise it was to hear her remarks! At times serious, then humorous, and back to serious again, I was impressed with her articulate, insightful comments about women…
Many thanks to the planning committee and volunteers who made the 2012 RN-AIM (Registered Nurse Association in Michigan) Annual Conference a smashing success! This year's theme for the conference, on September 20th and 21st, was "Nurse As Advocate" and I was honored to be invited to give the keynote presentation to kick off the meeting. My…
We recently had a case in California which required us to frequently communicate telephonically with the nursing staff. We had the required signed HIPAA release on the chart (multiple times, in fact, as it continued to get 'lost') as well as the family's verbal authorization to speak on their behalf with the clinical team. Unfortunately,…
Thirty years ago today, May 23rd, my mom died after a four month "battle" with what doctors said was liver cancer. Now that I know a little more (well, kind of…), I'm thinking it may have been pancreatic cancer. Still, 30 years ago today. So officially, I've been alive longer without my mom than with…
My mom was not a religious woman. A woman of faith, yes. But a quiet faith that wasn't flashy or 'in your face.' And through the years of raising her children, six in all, she was known to spout off a zinger, a memorable quote. One that has come to mean more to me as an…
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At the end of each year, I like to reflect back on the memorable and occasionally, not-so-memorable moments...
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