Episode 2: Please Don’t Call Me a Hero

Host: Maddy Pearson, DNP, RN, NEA-BC
Guests:
Christine Murphy, MS, PMHCNS-BC, CARN-AP, and Susan Gabriel, MSN, RN, CCRN

“More than ever, we need to put the oxygen mask on ourselves first, so that we can continue to do what we love, which is taking care of people.” – Christine Murphy, MS, PMHCNS-BC, CARN-AP

Nurses and other health care providers and staff have emerged as the heroes of the COVID-19 pandemic, but that label doesn’t always feel good. Christine Murphy, MS, PMHCNS-BC, CARN-AP, and Susan Gabriel, MSN, RN, CCRN, unpack the hero construct and discuss how the well-intentioned label can negatively affect someone’s well-being. Susan and Christine also share their self-care practices and provide practical advice for coping with stress and building your resiliency.

Show Notes

Our experts have shared the following resources for listeners who wish to continue exploring the topics discussed in this episode.

About Our Guests

Susan Gabriel, MSN, RN, CCRN

Susan GabrielSusan works in the Cardiac Surgery Intensive Care Unit at the Brigham. She has 40 years of experience as a clinical nurse, including 20 years in her current unit. She is known for her clinical expertise in caring for a diverse population of patients and her devotion to helping patients, their families and care team members navigating social issues and ethical dilemmas.

Outside of the Brigham, Susan lends her time and talents to serving her local and global community. As a long-time volunteer with the nonprofit organization, Team Heart, Susan travels to Rwanda annually to care for patients undergoing heart surgery. She also facilitates support meetings for families coping with opioid addiction at Learn to Cope, a nonprofit support network.

She recently completed her master’s degree in nursing, with a capstone project on moral resiliency.

Christine Murphy, MS, PMHCNS-BC, CARN-AP

Christine MurphyChristine is the program director of the Brigham’s Psychiatric Nursing Resource Service. She is a board-certified psychiatric clinical nurse specialist and a certified addiction nurse at the advanced practice level with more than 30 years of diverse experience in clinical, education and leadership roles.

Christine has extensive expertise in leading and contributing to excellence in medical-surgical, psychiatric nursing practices and patient care. Her prior roles include clinical psychiatric nurse practitioner, clinical nurse educator, substance abuse staff nurse and Emergency Department staff nurse.

She has played an essential role in leading and implementing nursing resiliency efforts at the Brigham during the pandemic.

Episode length: 33:43
Episode air date: March 31, 2021

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