Welcome to the doctor nurse podcast.
I'm your host, dr. Sandra contenta.
I'm a doctor, Lee prepared nurse practitioner.
And I am so glad you decided to join me today.
The doctor nurse podcast is a podcast for nurses and nurse
practitioners that are wanting to understand what exactly their
degrees can do for them. After the birth of my son, I had
this baking desire to have more flexibility in my career
choices. Despite feeling like all the
alphabet soup, after my name didn't really afford me.
Me very many options, I launched the podcast to find the answers
that I, so desperately needed. I also knew I couldn't be the
only nurse who felt this way. This is sound like you, if so,
come and hang out with me as I figure out what our nursing
degrees can give us access to, as far as career flexibility
control, over our schedules and Entrepreneurship my talking with
NPS and our friends who are doing exactly that.
Sit back and enjoy the conversation.
I doctor nurse Park. As Nation.
Welcome to the podcast. Today we are chatting with
Joelle Jean. She graduated from New York
University in 2005, the Bachelor's in nursing she
worked. And in general, pediatric,
emergency room, labor and delivery experience, then she
went back after looks like 10 years, she required, her
master's degree became a family nurse practitioner and she's now
a full-time senior writer for the nurse Journal dot-org.
She lives in New York City with her husband and two.
Two adorable children and cat named Zuzu, welcome to the
podcast, thank you for having me.
I'm so excited to chat with you about what you're doing because
I've had multiple nurse writers on and I really like this role
because I feel like there's a lot of flexibility and there's a
lot of things you can do with it, wanders is unaware, so I
can't wait. Yeah.
So let's dive in. So kind of describe to my
listeners, what it is that you do as a full-time senior nurse
writer and kind of Your job looks like day in day out.
Yeah. So as a full-time nurse Ryder, I
basically the whole process is pitching ideas, finding
interviewers and then writing the article.
So, I have it's a very small team nurse Journal dot or
there's meat of the internal writer.
Then I work with copyeditors, well, editor, copy editor than
it, goes through publishing and then the article comes.
We meet about, you know, Twice a week.
Well, I'm sorry, bi-weekly. And we just really pitch ideas
on what is trending in nursing. I write for their blog, it's the
news and advice Blum. So whatever is trending,
whatever I find is very dear and near to my heart.
I will pitch the idea either vote yea or nay and then we you
know go out and find interview interviewers be nurses to
interview. I rights are I did research on
the article then goes through the whole editing process and
then it starts over over again. So yeah you guys put out a
journal. Is this like a monthly Journal?
Like it's daily. An article goes out do.
Wow. So you guys are putting out
content every day. Yeah.
Okay. And so when I was looking at the
website and seeing the staff, you're the only nurse on the
staff. Correct.
Yes, I am a nurse there on the staff again.
It's a small team. So So eventually that may
change, but yeah, it's they realized that they needed an
expert rider for the site and serendipitously serendipitously.
I ended up getting the role because I was writing, maybe a
year prior to that, I met another nurse writer Porsche,
she's at the right nurse on Instagram, and she's a program
where she was looking for a nurse Riders.
And I've always loved writing like, Ever since I was a child
love love, love writing but I became a, I became a nurse and
but I still wrote on the side and I ended up falling finding
Porsche and she basically emulated everything that I was,
she was a nurse. She was a writer, she was
African-American, and I was like, oh my God, this is exactly
what I want. So I freelance writing, I did
freelance writing with her for about a year and then this
position came up right at the light Like heart of covid where
I was a nurse practitioner in a clinic and it was nuts.
You two babies during, and I happen to me too kid, doing like
Home Care on top of work, and no crazy.
It's, I know, I think I have post-traumatic stress syndrome
because I'm trying to think about like how we did it, but my
mother loved, like, I block it out.
Yeah, I try not to think about it, but my mother-in-law was
very instrumental during that She took them my oldest.
One did homeschool I mean remote learning and my little one was
just turning once like right at the height of covid.
So he wasn't in school or anything, but my mother-in-law
took them, my husband and I when he was off he would, you know,
take care of them and when I was working ever, but I was away
from, I know this is going in a holdup different.
No, no this is important. No, it's important because it's
what you had to do. Yeah, working my husband works
in health care to, so in the height of Covid.
She took them for six weeks. She was like, don't even come
over, we have to see them through the door.
Like it was so Thomas because we didn't want to get them sick.
We didn't want. She was like, if you guys you're
in healthcare. Yeah.
So we didn't want to get them sick.
We didn't want to get her sick. You know, she was just like just
until we figure out what's going to happen.
You guys, I'll take care of them.
So she took them for six weeks. We went his visit them like
every couple of days. So Traumatizing, but it's true.
Made it through goodness. Yeah.
And then, during that I was writing and then I realized
like, oh, this position came up and I applied and interviewed
and the rest is history. What I love about this too is
that it actually kind of gets you out of that covid since you
know, where you're kind of in the covid line of fire working
in healthcare. Yeah.
You're working from home, right? And so you're able to kind of
take your kids back from your mother-in-law Yeah.
So yeah you can bring them home and you know she doesn't have to
be a full-time mom again and you can actually see her children.
How did you get to this specific spot in your career?
As you've been kind of going through, I know you've worked as
you know, emergency room, Pediatrics and then labor and
delivery and then just kind of transitioning what made you go.
Like I don't think I want to be at the bedside anymore.
I don't think I want to be clinical like in the trenches
type work. Yeah I mean I think I became a
I'm a nurse practitioner. I love.
That's one of the biggest things I miss is the patient care.
I don't miss the Brianna burocracy and all that nonsense
that happens with with being a clinician.
I miss my patients terribly. How writing has always been a
passion of mine like forever for as long as I can remember.
I always loved creative writing. I wanted to be a children's book
writer for a really long time. I was like in a critique group
and everything then I realized how hard It was, and I was like,
it's really hard to get published so that which is
surprising because I'll read like books to my kids, to my
kid. And I'm like, this is the lamest
child's book I've ever yet. But how did this get published
its so. But yes, there is a really fine
line between like Goodnight Moon and then there's the other
books. Yeah, I mean, I want to be a
really well-known children's book, really great writer.
So yes, a lot of it is who, you know, some of It's who, you
know, but but it's a lot of work, like putting in all those
queries. Like you have to like, get a
literary, you know, you have to like creary your work which is
like send the letter out to pitch your idea and then get
picked up. I never went that far, so maybe
I gave up too early, but let's go back.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Like you could come up with a
nurse book or some don't give up on that dream.
And like minorities to. There's not a lot of books for
minority children. So yes, it's still a passion of
mine, but, you know, yeah, I was writing with Porsche, like I
said, early and a lot of it had to do with imposter syndrome,
right? So you think like, I'm not that
good of a, right? Like I can write, but I'm not
the best. I don't write for the New York
Times. You know what I mean?
Think like, oh, I have to be able to be this like, well,
written. Well, Red establish writer, but
in actuality the reader, just once fast, you know?
So as long as you can get that information out to the reader
and it flows really well that it's not that difficult.
So being with Porsha really helped me get over that imposter
syndrome, like me submitting an article and I'm like, what do
you think? She's like Joelle, just let it
go. It's fine.
It's good. It's elegant, it's published.
Once you see that happening over and over again, you like Oh,
okay. Well maybe I do kind of know
what I'm doing. I went for this role.
I had a portfolio. Luckily of art were already
published and I was a nurse. It was basically a job that was
written for me. So so I really, you know, I went
for it and that's where I am today.
Yeah. Well this journey is you've been
kind of getting to this spot as nurse writer, there's been
moments that have been hard. When was that have been easy?
Would you give me an example of a moment kind of What you said
like with the Imposter syndrome or a situation that happened
that you're like maybe I'm not cut out for this but then you
just kept persevering you kept pursuing.
Yeah, your dream. Yeah I think I think a lot of it
has to do with like constructive criticism.
When you start getting that in the beginning, you're like, oh
my God, maybe I don't know what I'm doing.
Maybe it's not the best work but it's really just crafting you to
be a better writer like you. Just because you forgot a comma,
but does it mean or it's in passive tense versus active
tense? Like, doesn't mean you don't
know what you're doing. It's just that building up that
confidence and knowing like, you know what you're writing is
really for the audience. I don't have, I mean, there are
some articles that I right now that my editor was like, hmm,
maybe it needs a little bit, something more, like we need
like a little bit more, you know.
Our interview quotes or something like that.
So that's when you're like, oh, you your, your ego gets a little
bruised. But, other than that, I haven't
had anything super duper traumatic.
Yeah. What you're describing is the
ability to get feedback and to see it as a gift and to see it
as something that is making you stronger.
And stead of like, man, I'm not. This isn't for me.
I'm not doing this. Like I'm not getting five-star
ratings every single time. You still have to keep going.
Even though that piece wasn't your best work or, you know,
they think something else might need to be at, it'll help.
Grow your skill set and a bit more.
Yeah, definitely. Yeah, no, I was going to say
that. It's just so, opposite from
nursing like nursing, it's like, life or death.
Right. So you kind of really, really,
no need to know what you're doing.
And I think I took that with me in this new role like, you, you
know, self-criticism, like, you know, it's not good enough or
whatever. But you learn like, okay, you
could just erase what you wrote and rewrite it and perspective.
Do you want to think that you're a perfect nurse?
You don't have to have and carry that weight of I'm not perfect.
It's like no I could just raise it in, right?
Yeah. I think it's really good.
That you said that you had mentors along the way, somebody
to kind of help you kind of get to where you needed to go.
Is there a than anybody else? That's inspired you.
As you've been kind of in this new role as senior writer,
thanks for listening to the episode.
I hope hope you're enjoying the conversation.
I wanted to take this time and remind you to check out the
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It's another way to support the podcast and to get really cool
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promotion, any sharing helps build my audience and I greatly
appreciate it. Now, let's get back to the
episode. Yeah, my I mean, my number one
fan is my husband. He's amazing.
So supportive and all my Endeavors more excited than I am
and whatever I pursue, which is Is great.
And I have my family, my family is super supportive.
I mean, my I come from a very traditional Haitian background,
so, my dad's, like writing, like what I thought you were taking
care of patients, you know? But, but no, I mean, he, they're
super curious about what I'm writing.
Like sent me this article when you're done and I wrote an
article about like nursing within generation.
So I focused on like a Haitian family.
It was like a mother, a daughter, an aunt.
And they all were nurses and they talked about their
experience of how they, how hard it was to come to the United
States and Kate having to take over nursing courses and just
that camaraderie. And that the, I guess they're
ribbon of how, you know? They stay together.
And a lot of it, even though it's different Generations, they
still had the same experience at the end of the day, you know,
they loved loved nursing and I was really proud.
Privileged enough to actually write that story for them which
I love like. That's that's that's what's the
Golden Nugget of writing you know.
Just like being able to tell someone's story.
You think it's interesting that you said, when they came over,
because I know a lot of foreigners when they come from
other countries, they're they're educated to be Physicians and
nurses and then they get here and they're told you can't
practice. So you have to retake all these
exams and I've had other other minorities people from other.
Are countries that have come over and they're like, no, I'm a
nurse over there. But I had to redo everything to
come over here and work. So it's actually really
admirable to see how they kind of humble themselves, and get
right back into being a student nurse.
Again, one of the things I'm just curious about what are some
of the topics that you write about with the nurse Journal
dot-org? Because, as I was looking
through it, you guys create content.
And this is why I think this, what you're doing is so
important and for nurses to hear and to see what you're doing,
because you create content around scholarship money, Honey,
you create content on like how to get from where you are right
now to being a travel nurse. And that's somebody that like
doesn't even know that they want to be a nurse how to become a
nurse or not a nurse like you walk them.
Through all the stata journal is a great resource for any nurse
or any person considering being a nurse.
That's like I don't even know where to get funding to go to
nursing school. I don't even know pitch, your
nurse journal dot-org to my listeners, to get them to figure
out. Why would I check out what she's
working on? Yeah, I mean our brand Is really
about like uplifting the nurse voice, right?
We want to grab you at all mouth stones and nursing has very
many, like, maybe eight or ten, mile Stones, right?
You're like, thinking about nursing you become the nursing
student, you can either become a nurse's, aide an LPN, get your
associate degree in nursing. You can get your bachelor's
degree in nursing. You can decide to do forensic,
nursing you could decide to be a travel nurse you.
Because I have to be a community.
So we really try to like pinpoint where these nurses are
in their whole journey of Nursing.
And we just really try to educate, you know, that that
group that Community, you know, we, you know, you want to be
like the resource that everyone goes to write.
Well, that all nursing perspective students or
experienced nurses. Go to just get information on
the On the career, then, you know, they're nursing career.
Yeah. And that was the thing I was
noticing as I was looking through, like, oh, this is what
you do. If you want to go into the
military to have them pay for your Nursing degree.
Like it is a plethora of information.
You just have to literally click and you're in a spot.
That's teaching you what you need to do to get to where you
want to go. So I just think for nurses
again, that are looking for different career options that
are like, I don't want to do this anymore.
I want to go do something else, but how do I get there?
Yeah, you guys are a great resource and again, it's written
by Minors, you have nursing contributors on your gas staff
and so I think there's a lot of great information that you guys
are putting out that again would help.
Nurses, I know you miss miss bedside you caring for patients
but now you caring for nurses so it's definitely again, people
are people. So you want to care for all and
even though it's something different, it's still that same
Mantra of providing care. And I think that's a really,
really neat. And so if you could go back at
the start of your career and give yourself a piece of advice,
Something that you wish you would have told yourself at the
beginning of your nursing career.
What would you tell yourself? That's a great question.
Hmm. I think what I would tell myself
like now, I know there's so many Avenues to nursing you literally
can do anything with a Nursing degree.
I think I would explore a little bit.
I'll I stayed in the emergency room for a long time because I
loved everyone I worked with so I stayed there for Or like 11
years because you're just like the people make where you were,
that's true. But I would have liked to maybe
experience more of like the tech side, you know, maybe do
informatics just figuring out like a little bit about what
that is about just not to not to not take it seriously.
You definitely should take nursing seriously, especially
your first couple of years, but not to be afraid to explore
other options. This, you know, like we were
talking earlier like we are so nurses, never say no to anything
where multitaskers more interested in pretty much
everything. So just not being afraid to like
try new things and if it doesn't work out, you know, there's
always a nursing job waiting for you.
There's a shortage. Yeah, it will still be there.
It will still. Yeah.
No, it's true.
So many nurses. Get on say that exact same theme
of like, Don't worry, there's always something there for you
to just kind of step back into and to go back to.
So why would you stay if you're unhappy?
Because that will always be there.
So go, try this thing that might find enjoyment in and I agree
with you. The right boss, the right
people, the right there, all the things that you need to have a
really, really good career and a job that you don't want to
leave. If you're missing any of those
elements, your boss is not great with the people that you work
with are great or it's just not the right time in your life,
whatever it is that you're doing.
Going to be miserable at your job, and I think that's another
good thing for a nurse to hear. Just that, it's okay.
If you really like where you're working, you like, who you work
with and you stay a little bit longer, because the people are
good. I think that's important and
it's sometimes really, really hard to find.
So, if you find it, hold on to it.
And so, for the last part of the interview is the rapid fire
questions. Are you ready?
I'm ready. Alrighty!
Alrighty, so we already know your favorite subject in school
was creative writing. Yeah.
What was one subject that you didn't like?
Like learning in school. Oh my God, there's so many.
I well, you know what? I wasn't the best student.
Like I really I really wasn't. I was I loved to write, I loved
like Communications marketing. All that stuff.
The things that probably was my worst subject.
Oh my God. I loved psychology but it was
introduction to psychology. Yes.
What so hard I had to take it because it was so cute.
Shouldn't twice. Yeah.
Contrition twice to because Nixon another one, you're like,
oh I know how to eat. Eat not doing well, dropping it
look. I know that you're saying you
like calorie counting time beating, but the nutritional.
Yeah. Okay, we can't even figure it
out. Imagine like the regular person.
Oh yeah, what a disaster? Yeah, it's totally a bad stuff,
but I remember that class. That was one, I struggled with
an intro to psychology. Ecology statistic?
Yes, that sounds. Another one and make you take it
every year to was like, oh, Healthcare stats.
And it's like, come on cash, never use that.
Why did I have to? I'm just kidding.
Yeah. Yeah.
What was your very first job that you ever took ever laughter
ever? I think it was.
I babysitting, I guess it would be.
Yeah babysitter. If you had to give a book to
someone, what would be a book that you would just Like this
one, I love that outliers or he's a liar but Michael.
Yeah, I'll come Gladwell. Who do good.
Like if you think you can do something and you're afraid just
go ahead and do it because these people were not supposed to do
what they ended up doing and there were successful at it.
There was a need and they went for it and it's a great book.
Yes, I love Malcolm Gladwell. He writes to other books that I
love, it's called blink that book fire.
If you've never read it, it'll blow your mind.
And then the other one is David and Goliath a sponge around
anything. He says, I'm like, yeah, I like
absorb what it is. That you're saying and talking.
Yeah. Because he's just so smart.
It's based on like fact. Yeah, yeah.
It's one of those statistics that we hated it.
So we're glad he loved it. Difficult Concepts.
Just really easy to understand and put it in ways that you can
just better palatable like that were it was so wonderful
chatting with you today. Thanks for coming on the podcast
and describing and sharing what what it is that you do, and how
you've developed your career and how you found something that
lights you up inside, that brings you Joy.
And yeah, gives you the kind of life that you want.
That's what this podcast is all about.
It's about hearing stories from other nurses went For their
dreams. They just went for it and
sometimes that's entrepreneurship.
Sometimes, that's this role that they didn't even know existed.
Or they didn't even know that they could morph their career
into and it's going for it and giving it all.
You got Not Looking Back. Burning the ships.
Yes going on, burning the ships, man.
That going forward. You get more feel more confident
with experience. So it's like, even if you know,
now we're at I'm at that stage where I'm like, okay, yeah, for
the dream. Yeah.
And again, I can't wait to see you when you write your
children's book because I think that it up that dream of not
going. Well, let's see, let's see.
But I would love you. I would love to write about you
your project. So definitely I will reach out
and definitely puts an article about that.
Oh, that would be awesome. I would love that.
I can totally be a, I'm totally be down for that.
So just let me know. Okay, alrighty guys, thanks for
listening to the podcast today. Check out Joelle, check out,
check her out on Tag her and all her social media account.
So that you can see what she's doing.
Check out the nurse Journal dot-org.
Because again, like I said, there's a ton of information on
there if you were thinking about roll switching roles.
So you want to go for that nurse practitioner role.
They've got all the stuff on there that you need to be
successful and to be able to figure it out, you don't have to
work really hard and they did the work for you.
So check them out guys. And as always enjoy the journey,
hey, Emma, Emma package. I love you mama, and thankfully
to me. So, That's a wrap.
Be sure to subscribe to the show so you don't miss an episode and
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And just a friendly reminder the information on this podcast is
for educational purposes only and the information should not
be used in substitute for Professional Care by a medical
provider. The information in this podcast
does not represent medical or professional advice or services.
And just a friendly reminder the information on this podcast is
for educational purposes only and the information should not
be used in substitute for Professional Care by a medical
provider. The information in this podcast
does not represent medical or professional advice or services.