A bit about philanthropy

March 4, 2020
 |  7 Comments
Narrative by Bobbi Martin RN President & CEO

I’m often asked “How did you get involved in doing work in Africa?” My answer is “I was invited”. Being invited forms a relationship based on trust, respect, and a desire to accomplish collaborative goals. Global Nurse Network goes where we’re invited and eagerly work alongside our partners to assess needs, develop just-in-time evidence based resources and support for nurses to improve patient outcomes.

We tout evidence-based practice (EBP), but know that there are 3 very important parts of EBP. The first is the scientific evidence that supports and directs our practice based on research. However two other components are often left out and equally important. These are the experience and expertise of clinicians AND the patient preferences.

In the U.S., when we think of EBP, we assume we know our populations and their desires. This is not true and even more so of countries outside of the U.S. Here is an example.

Burn training delivered via Zoom and closed Facebook page to Whisper’s staff

During our last training session, we reviewed the latest EBP standards for burn treatment during the fluid resuscitation phase and we learned that although Lactated Ringers is recommended to be infused the first 8 hours according to the Parkland Formula (and the U.S. standard of EBP), in Uganda, LR is replaced with whole blood. Why is that? Think about the sub-Saharan patient population. Most burns occur in children who suffer from malnutrition, chronic malaria, and often sickle cell disease. Due to these significant co-morbidities, whole blood in preferred and although the recommendation is different, the practice is evidence-based.

Take a look at our Visit Summary Articles to learn about how we began working with Whispers Magical Children’s Hospital.

On to a bit about philanthropy and a little narrative about the top left picture above! I grew up in Youngstown Ohio, a steel town, blue collar in every way. My Mom raised me doing charity work through the Ohio Bell Telephone Company Pioneers. We collected and distributed food, clothing, shoes, and toys for children, fed elderly residents in nursing homes, and spent every holiday celebrating with pediatric residents at her favorite handicapped children’s home. This charity work was completely unnoticed and that was the best part. It was simply something we did and what I continue to do today through the Global Nurse Network and Global Nurse Foundation.

Stay tuned, until tomorrow.