
I’ve long been a supporter of the March of Dimes’ and a fan of their annual “Heroes in Action” program, which celebrates nurses and maternal and infant health providers in 15 different categories. This year, I was honored to be named the 2023 March of Dimes’ Hero in Action as a women’s health advocate.
I am so proud to have been joined by 400 nominees nationwide in the category of “Innovation in Maternal Child Health Clinical Advancement.” My mission to Southwest Missouri and the surrounding region with quality care took a big step forward this year with the launch of my self-funded podcast, Why Am I Just Finding This Out. This project was a significant passion project I connected to my nursing doctorate in Leadership and Education completed this year from Pittsburg State University.
I was absolutely floored and delighted to win this award, and hope it furthers interest in my podcast so I can make a bigger impact and leave a legacy of better.
“I’m incredibly honored by this recognition, I wouldn’t have done this work for almost a quarter-century if it wasn’t one of my biggest passions in life. My top priority is improving the lives of all women, helping them leave a legacy of better health, and empowering them to lead a life of wellness and be heard as self-advocates.”
Together, we can work to remove barriers to women’s care and diminish health disparities. I will continue to advocate for those in desperate need of health knowledge. With my position on the National Association of Nurse Practitioners in Women’s Health Task Force for core competencies, I will remain a voice for women’s wellness and a philanthropist for important initiatives.
As host of Why Am I Just Finding This Out, I share my passions and knowledge alongside collaborators in healthcare. My goal is to join with fellow healthcare professionals to make vital information available for all.
Alspaugh, A., Barroso, J., Reibel, M., & Phillips, S. (2019). Women’s contraceptive perceptions, beliefs, and attitudes: An integrative review of qualitative research. Journal of Midwifery & Women’s Health, 65(1), 64–84. https://doi.org/10.1111/jmwh.12992
BA, D., BA, S., & MD, M. H. (2021). What the World Needs Now: Lifestyle Medicine for All Women. American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine, 155982762110281. https://doi.org/10.1177/15598276211028101
Balls-Berry, J., Sinicrope, P., Valdez Soto, M., Brockman, T., Bock, M., & Patten, C. (2018). Linking podcasts with social media to promote community health and medical research: Feasibility Study. JMIR Formative Research, 2(2). https://doi.org/10.2196/10025
Berkman, N. D., Sheridan, S. L., Donahue, K. E., Halpern, D. J., & Crotty, K. (2011). Low Health Literacy and Health Outcomes: An updated systematic review. Annals of Internal Medicine, 155(2), 1–941.
Bryant, A. (2022, June 28). Racial and ethnic disparities in obstetrics and gynecological care and role of implicit bias. UpToDate. https://www.uptodate.com/contents/racial-and-ethnic-disparities-in-obstetric-and-gynecologic-care-and-role-of-implicit-biases#!
Bureau, U. S. C. (2021, November 9). 2020 demographic analysis estimates press kit. Census.gov. https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-kits/2020/2020-demographic-analysis.html
Burton, C. W. (2016). The health needs of young women. Advances in Nursing Science, 39(2), 108–118. https://doi.org/10.1097/ans.0000000000000119
Cristina Cassano MSN, R. N. (2015, August 29). Interactive Technology is shaping patient education and experience. RN Journal. https://rn-journal.com/journal-of-nursing/interactive-technology-patient-education-experience
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (n.d.). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved February 4, 2022, from https://www.cdc.gov/
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2020, August 13). Maternal mortality. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/maternal-mortality/index.html
Clarke, M. A., Fruhling, A. L., Sitorius, M., Windle, T. A., Bernard, T. L., & Windle, J. R. (2020). Impact of age on patients’ communication and technology preferences in the era of meaningful use: Mixed methods study. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 22(6). https://doi.org/10.2196/13470
Connor, K., Wambach, K., & Baird, M. B. (2018). Descriptive, qualitative study of women who use mobile health applications to obtain perinatal health information. Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic & Neonatal Nursing, 47(6), 728–737. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jogn.2018.04.138
Crouch, E., & Gordon, N. P. (2019). Prevalence and factors influencing use of internet and electronic health resources by middle-aged and older adults in a US health plan population: Cross-sectional Survey Study. JMIR Aging, 2(1). https://doi.org/10.2196/11451
Daniel, H., Erickson, S. M., & Bornstein, S. S. (2018). Women’s Health Policy in the United States: An American College of Physicians Position Paper. Annals of Internal Medicine, 168(12), 874. https://doi.org/10.7326/m17-3344
Dmytryshyn, J., & Selk, A. (2022). Learning on the go: Assessing Knowledge Gained from Medical Podcasts Created for Vulvovaginal Disease Education. Journal of Lower Genital Tract Disease, 26(2), 164–168. https://doi.org/10.1097/lgt.0000000000000654
Gebretatyos, H., Ghirmai, L., Amanuel, S., Gebreyohannes, G., Tsighe, Z., & Tesfamariam, E. H. (2020). Effect of health education on knowledge and attitude of menopause among middle-aged teachers. BMC Women’s Health, 20(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12905-020-01095-2
Geller, S. E., Koch, A. R., Roesch, P., Filut, A., Hallgren, E., & Carnes, M. (2018). The more things change, the more they stay the same. Academic Medicine, 93(4), 630–635. https://doi.org/10.1097/acm.0000000000002027
Ghiasi, A. (2019). Health information needs, sources of information, and barriers to accessing health information among pregnant women: A systematic review of Research. The Journal of Maternal-Fetal & Neonatal Medicine, 34(8), 1320–1330. https://doi.org/10.1080/14767058.2019.1634685
Harper, J. C., Phillips, S., Biswakarma, R., Yasmin, E., Saridogan, E., Radhakrishnan, S., C Davies, M., & Talaulikar, V. (2022). An online survey of perimenopausal women to determine their attitudes and knowledge of the Menopause. Women’s Health, 18, 1-18. https://doi.org/10.1177/17455057221106890
Hoyert, D., & Minino, A. (2020, January 30). National Vital Statistics reports – Centers for Disease Control and … Center for Disease Control. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr69/nvsr69-02-508.pdf
Kendig, S., Rideout, R., & Williams, A. (2021, October). Missouri maternal-infant health: State and regional actions impacting care delivery and health outcomes. MHA. https://web.mhanet.com/media-library/missouri-maternal-infant-health-state-and-regional-actions-impacting-care-delivery-and-health-outcomes/
Lange-Maia, B. S., Karavolos, K., Avery, E. F., Strotmeyer, E. S., Karvonen-Gutierrez, C. A., Appelhans, B. M., Janssen, I., Dugan, S. A., & Kravitz, H. M. (2020). Contribution of common chronic conditions to midlife physical function decline: The Study of Women’s health across the nation. Women’s Midlife Health, 6(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40695-020-00053-0
Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. (2020, October 14). Menopause. Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/menopause/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20353401
Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services. (2021). Pregnancy-associated mortality review (PAMR). Pregnancy Associated Mortality Review | Health & Senior Services. https://health.mo.gov/data/pamr/
Moran, K. J., Burson, R., & Conrad, D. (2020). The Doctor of Nursing practice project: A framework for success. Jones & Bartlett Learning.
NIH. (2022). Hormone therapy for cancer. National Cancer Institute. https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/treatment/types/hormone-therapy
Nordhues, H. C., Bhagra, A., Stroud, N. N., Vencill, J. A., & Kuhle, C. L. (2021). Covid-19 gender disparities and mitigation recommendations: A narrative review. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 96(7), 1907–1920.
Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP). (2021, December 15). Exemptions (2018 requirements). HHS.gov. https://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/regulations-and-policy/regulations/45-cfr-46/common-rule-subpart-a-46104/index.html
Palmer, J. R., Cozier, Y. C., & Rosenberg, L. (2022). Research on Health Disparities: Strategies and findings from the Black Women’s Health Study. American Journal of Epidemiology. https://doi.org/10.1093/aje/kwac022
Pender, N. (2011). Health Promotion Model Manual. University of Michigan. https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/handle/2027.42/85350 (Links to an external site.)
Petiprin, A. (2020). Pender’s Health Promotion Model. Nursing Theory. https://nursing-theory.org/theories-and-models/pender-health-promotion-model.php
Pinn, V. W. (2003). Sex and gender factors in medical studies. JAMA, 289(4), 397. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.289.4.397
Prodan‐Bhalla, N., & Browne, A. J. (2019). Exploring women’s health care experiences through an equity lens: Findings from a community clinic serving marginalised women. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 28(19-20), https://doi.org/10.1111/jocn.14937
Qualtrics. (2022, July 26). What is a Likert scale? Qualtrics. https://www.qualtrics.com/experience-management/research/likert-scale/
Smith, S. M., Orgill, S., Smith, J., & Smith, R. (2022, September 9). Online survey software – powering +1B surveys annually. Qualtrics. https://www.qualtrics.com/core-xm/survey-software/
Starrs, A. M., Ezeh, A. C., Barker, G., Basu, A., Bertrand, J. T., Blum, R., Coll-Seck, A. M., Grover, A., Laski, L., Roa, M., Sathar, Z. A., Say, L., Serour, G. I., Singh, S., Stenberg, K., Temmerman, M., Biddlecom, A., Popinchalk, A., Summers, C., & Ashford, L. S. (2018). Accelerate progress—sexual and reproductive health and rights for all: Report of the Guttmacher– Lancet Commission. The Lancet, 391(10140), 2642–2692. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0140-6736(18)30293-9
Stec, M. A., Arbour, M. W., & Hines, H. F. (2019). Client‐centered Mobile Health Care Applications: Using the Mobile Application Rating Scale Instrument for evidence‐based evaluation. Journal of Midwifery & Women’s Health, 64(3), 324–329. https://doi.org/10.1111/jmwh.12941
Terry, A. J. (2018). Clinical Research for the Doctor of Nursing Practice (3rd ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Timmers, T., Janssen, L., Kool, R. B., & Kremer, J. A. M. (2020). Educating patients by providing timely information using smartphone and tablet apps: Systematic review. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 22(4). https://doi.org/10.2196/17342
Troutman, M., Rafique, S., & Plowden, T. C. (2020). Are higher unintended pregnancy rates among minorities a result of disparate access to contraception? Contraception and Reproductive Medicine, 5(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40834-020-00118-5
United Health Foundation. (2021). Explore health measures in Missouri: 2021 annual report. America’s Health Rankings. https://www.americashealthrankings.org/explore/annual/state/MO
U.S. Census Bureau. (2021). U.S. Census Bureau quick facts: Missouri. U.S. Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/MO/PST045221
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2021, March 31). Minority Health and Health Disparities: Definitions and parameters. National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities. https://www.nimhd.nih.gov/about/strategic-plan/nih-strategic-plan-definitions-and-parameters.html
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2021, June). NICHD. Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development https://www.nichd.nih.gov/health/topics/factsheets/maternal-morbidity-mortality
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2022, May 6). Research explores the impact of menopause on Women’s Health and Aging. National Institute on Aging. https://www.nia.nih.gov/news/research-explores-impact-menopause-womens-health-and-aging
Ward, J. B., Gartner, D. R., Keyes, K. M., Fliss, M. D., McClure, E. S., & Robinson, W. R. (2019). How do we assess a racial disparity in health? distribution, interaction, and interpretation in epidemiological studies. Annals of Epidemiology, 29, 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.annepidem.2018.09.007
What is an app? types of apps and examples. Indeed Career Guide. (2021, July). https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/what-is-an-app
Wikimedia Foundation. (2022, March 25). Gender inequality. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender_inequality
World Health Organization. (n.d.). Adolescent health. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/westernpacific/health-topics/adolescent-health