005) Spencer Rizk

Today we are talking with Dr. Lorena Guerrero. She is a nursing professor with over thirty years of nursing experience, and finds great joy in teaching and mentoring future nurse practitioners. During this episode, Dr. Guerrero shares her experiences balancing education, family, and career, and encourages nurses to find fulfillment in their profession.

Today we are speaking with Lindsey LaRock, a nurse practitioner from a long line of nurses. Initially drawn to a different career, witnessing extreme poverty in Bangladesh brought her back to nursing. She's dedicated herself to helping the most vulnerable, from bone marrow and liver transplant patients, to women in the sex trade in Bangkok. Now, Lindsey focuses on those struggling with fentanyl addiction, with the mission to treat everyone with dignity and provide a safe space for their stories.

Today we are speaking with Dr. Jessica Haymond, a nurse midwife who began her career in oncology nursing. Despite not having a background in labor & delivery, her outstanding work has shown that our past experiences in nursing don't have to limit our future careers.  Jessica's unique path highlights how oncology nursing and midwifery can complement each other, offering opportunities to make a profound difference for families during life's most significant transitions.

Today, we are speaking with Nancy Petersen. Nancy has dedicated much of her long career to the field of endometriosis. Even in retirement, she remains incredibly active, spending over 50 hours a week managing an online endometriosis support group with more than 200,000 members. Through this platform, she provides invaluable education and fosters patient self-advocacy. This recording, one of our earliest, offers a fascinating glimpse into the history of nursing. Despite some challenges with sound quality, Nancy’s stories are truly captivating.

Today we are are speaking with Dr. Spencer Rizk, a nurse practitioner with over 14 years of experience in clinical practice, education, leadership, and healthcare informatics.  In addition to his professional roles, he is also a circus trapeze artist in his free time.  His encounters with death and cancer early in life have deeply influenced his nursing career, shaping his views on life, death, and the transformation of healthcare into a patient-centered system.  

Today we have the privilege of speaking with Kate Smith and Jamie Pechan, a nurse and nurse practitioner who pioneered a mobile heart failure clinic in Seattle.  Their mission is to provide heart failure care to the unhoused population, meeting them where they are and offering essential services and education often fails to deliver. Kate and Jamie have successfully reduced emergency room visits, hospital admissions, and length of hospital stays for their patients.

Today we are speaking with Dr. Matt Liechty, a classmate during my nurse practitioner education.  Matt has over 20 years of nursing experience in critical care, nursing education, and outpatient cardiology and endocrinology.  Today Matt shares his insights about burnout, the complexities of healthcare, and the nurse's role as a patient guide through the system.  

Today we are speaking with Joey Walp, an ICU nurse planning the next steps of his career.  When I first met Joey in 2020, he was a student in the last semester of nursing school.  His preceptorship with me was cut short because of the COVID pandemic, and I feel fortunate to have this opportunity to reconnect and learn about his nursing journey.

Today we are speaking with Cheryl Graf, a nurse practitioner with over 30 years of nursing experience. Cheryl was instrumental in developing the first sexual assault nurse examiner programs in Washington State. She is now providing telehealth and primary care in Eastern Washington. She was my instructor during my nurse practitioner education and I was happy to learn more about her and the wisdom she has to share with the nursing community.