Overnight Observations with Jen the R.N.

The week after Thanksgiving tends to be a bit slower than the others, with people recovering from overeating, and in some cases, drinking. I believe that the slow pace at which everything moves is also an appeal for introspection and reflection.

So, I decided to bring a short and sweet episode to think about human nature, what we laugh at, and why we steal food.

In this episode, I share a few experiences working on Thanksgiving and some post-holiday incidents at lunch break. We also discuss where the line should be drawn for first responders' dark humor and why we should avoid going for the cheap laugh.

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• We all had holidays we preferred to work and get out of the house (1:41)
• The missing turkey sandwich (2:48)
• Un unpleasant encounter on Facebook (3:51)
• No humor is meant to harm (4:54)

Resources:

• Police Humor In Tough Times
• Fire Department Chronicles: Is Dark Humor Bad?

Let's Connect!

• Overnight Observations website
• Email: [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today, I have the pleasure of welcoming my first ever guest to the show, Pat Bocchino. I've known her since I was 15; she is my mother-in-law, mother of my ex-husband (so outlaw, I guess...), and one of the main reasons I became a nurse. Pat had a deal with her husband; after he finished his engineering degree, it would be her turn to do what she wanted to. So they did; when he graduated, he enrolled her in school himself. Pat graduated from nursing school at age 34 and retired over 40 years later.

In this episode, we take a long walk through Pat's experiences as a nurse. She shared a bit of her story growing up in an Italian household and becoming a nurse to fulfill her mother's dream. We go through some of the funniest moments of Pat's career, like some situations at Danvers State Hospital or Frank's interactions with patients in the recovery room. We also reflect on the ability to use humor as an escape valve to the sad situations nurses must deal with daily and much more.

Some Questions I Ask:

• Tell me a bit about yourself. Tell me about how you became a nurse. Why did you become a nurse? (2:58)
• When did you graduate from North Shore? And how was it different from today? (6:24)
• Would you say that humor and taking that step back and getting a laugh out of something is helpful? (16:34)
• From a humor standpoint, what advice would you give people in nursing in public service? (21:09)

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• About Pat's childhood and how she became a nurse (3:07)
• Some of the adventures at Danvers State Hospital (9:52)
• Full moon night shifts are something else (14:33)
• Families need as much healing as the patients do (19:20)
• Some stories from the recovery room. Frank was a bad boy (27:21)

Let's Connect!

• Overnight Observations website
• Email: [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Strolling through the hallways of my memory, I came across some good and not-so-good recollections of my childhood and teenage years watching soap operas. It all started with a contemptuous conversation about SOAP notes, an acronym representing a widely used method of documentation for healthcare providers. A practice I bet only old-school nurses keep alive; the rest of them might be using some fancy software.

In this episode, I share my vision on SOAP notes, what they are suitable for, and why I prefer to stick with the good old bullet points during a conversation with a patient. I also travel back to my childhood, remembering my experiences with ice cream and hospitals. We also take a closer look at soap operas' history in America, from radio to TV shows.

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• It is good to take some things out of our chest (1:18)
• What does SOAP stand for in SOAP notes (2:27)
• From throat soar to undergo anesthesia at the Revere's Grover Manor Hospital (5:01)
• A bit of soap operas' history (6:22)

Resources:

• Network Radio's Fateful Thanksgiving of 1960

Let's Connect!

• Overnight Observations website
• Email: [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

These are exciting days for me as Halloween gets closer. It has always been my favorite holiday, even more than Christmas, even more than my own birthday. Unfortunately, as I haven't worked a single Halloween my entire life, I haven't had any first-hand experiences at the emergency room from this holiday. However, I do have to share some of my childhood memories "trick or treating" and a fascinating piece of research on how Hollywood horrors had depicted nurses through the years.

In this episode, we travel back to some happy Halloween memories from my childhood, my father's sweet tooth, and his planned chocolate shopping miscalculations. We also analyze in-depth the three types in which nurses were represented in Hollywood horrors throughout cinema history. Finally, we look at the evolution of nurses' uniforms and costumes, from our friend Florence Nightingale's original design to the 2008's designed by Luis Vuitton in Fashion Week.

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• The doctor said I can't go trick or treating this year. Going anyways (1:45)
• About my father's planned miscalculations (3:39)
• How Hollywood depicted nurses over the years (5:38)
• The evolution of the nurses' uniform through the years (8:31)

Resources:

• Nurse Advisor Magazine
• Nurse Buff
• Screen Rant
• Ameritech College of Healthcare

Let's Connect!

• Overnight Observations website

Email: [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The emergency room is definitely one of the few places where horror and humor can exist in the same space at the same time. However, it is not the only place where that can happen; a warzone is another excellent example, with the subtle addition of a thick sense of danger and an exceptionally high risk of getting a heavy wound or be killed. To Hunter Swan, our today's guest, humor will always make your life easier, even in an extremely violent and hostile environment like war.

In this episode, Hunter Swan, a former U.S Marine who spent over 8 years in the army, shares some stories of his time in the military, and we talk about the importance of humor to endure heavy training and armed combat. Hunter also offers some advice for those interested in joining the army; he explains what a sugar cookie is, and tells us his grandfather's incredible story from when he stormed Normandie.

Some Questions I Ask:

• How did you get into the Marines? (1:37)
• How long were you in, and what did you do? (2:57)
• What advice would you give for people enlisting in the army? (12:04)

In This Episode, You Will Learn:

• About the kind of combat Hunter witnessed (5:16)
• A bad stomach and a hot truck going through the desert (7:14)
• Trading MREs (Meals Ready-to-Eat) for a goat (9:13)
• What is a sugar cookie, and why military people don't like them (16:52)

Connect with Hunter:

• Instagram

Let's Connect!

• Overnight Observations website

Email: [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.