Love n' Leary Nursing Podcast

Hosts Marion Leary, PhD, MPH, RN and Rebecca Love, RN, MSN, FIEL welcome Shannon Vieira, RN and Kara Wilson, OT of MGB Home Care for an urgent conversation about one of the largest healthcare strikes in Massachusetts history.

On July 8th, home care nurses, physical therapists, occupational therapists, social workers, dietitians, and speech-language pathologists will walk off the job for seven days. On the same day, inpatient nurses at Brigham and Women's Hospital will also strike — and the hospital has announced it will lock them out for an additional four days.

In this episode, Shannon an...

Hosts Marion Leary, PhD, MPH, RN and Rebecca Love, RN, MSN, FIEL welcome Sandy Summers, RN, MSN, MPH, founder and executive director of The Truth About Nursing, for a powerful conversation about how the media shapes the way the public sees nurses — and why it matters far beyond entertainment.

For 25 years, Sandy has been pushing back against the way nurses are portrayed on TV, in advertising, and in the news. From the early days of organizing nurses to challenge ER, to going after Hooters for a naughty nurse ad campaign, to today's fight with The Pit, Sandy wa...

Hosts Marion Leary, PhD, MPH, RN and Rebecca Love, RN, MSN, FIEL welcome Danae Petit, a rising senior nursing student at the University of Pittsburgh and senior columnist at The Pitt News, for a powerful conversation about nursing school, identity, and the power of telling your own story.

Danae shares the rude awakening of her freshman year, the moment a small interaction at a campus food spot inspired her most-read column on what it means to be a Black nurse, and how falling in love with a labor and delivery clinical rotation helped her find her niche...

Disclaimer: The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in this episode belong solely to the hosts and do not necessarily reflect the official policy, beliefs, or position of Nurse.org.

Hosts Marion Leary, PhD, MPH, RN, and Rebecca Love, RN, MSN, FIEL, are joined by Dr. Lorena Grundy (AAUP Vice President and Practice Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering at Penn) and Dr. Logan Spector (pediatric cancer genomics specialist at the University of Minnesota School of Medicine) on the Love n' Leary Nursing Podcast.

The panel discusses a 412-page proposed rule from the White House's...

In this episode of the Love n' Leary podcast, host Rebecca Love sits down with nurse leaders Dr. Lendra James and Dr. Danielle McCamey, co-founders of Nurses Shift Change, to talk about why nurses must “report for duty” in Washington, D.C. this Nurses Week. They break down the urgent threats facing healthcare—hospital closures, cuts to Medicare and Medicaid, loss of coverage for vulnerable communities, and risks to nursing’s status as a profession—and why nurses’ voices are essential in shaping policy. 

Learn what to expect at the Report for Duty Rally and Hill Day, how advocacy...

In this episode of the Love n' Leary Podcast, hosts Marion Leary and Rebecca Love speak with nurses Dena Bushman and Rebekah Stewart about their difficult decision to resign from the United States Public Health Service. After years of leadership in public health and infectious disease response, both nurses share the ethical and moral conflicts they faced when deployments shifted toward immigration detention facilities. Through candid conversation, they discuss moral distress, nursing ethics, and the responsibility nurses carry when systems conflict with patient care. This episode explores advocacy, courage, and how nurses can use their voices to drive change...

In this episode of the Love n' Leary Podcast, we sit down with emergency nurse and congressional candidate Nancy Mannion (PA-11). Nancy shares how bedside experiences, seeing the impact of lack of access to care and crushing medical debt, propelled her to run for Congress. She breaks down the nursing skills—communication, negotiation, and teamwork—that translate directly to policymaking, and talks candidly about imposter syndrome, becoming a public figure, and preparing for tough town hall questions. Nancy also offers practical encouragement for nurses considering political engagement at any level, from school boards to federal office, and explains why she...

Space tourists, floating vomit, CPR in microgravity—this episode goes exactly where you think it won’t.

Marion and Rebecca sit down with Christine Rincon, founder of The Space Nurse™, to explore why the future of space travel urgently needs nurses. From decoding NASA job postings to unpacking “human in the loop” processes, Christine reveals how everyday bedside nursing skills directly translate to mission control and long-duration space missions. The conversation dives into microgravity’s surprising effects on the body, space station livability, and why nurses must help design the next era of space exploration.

If you’ve ev...

In this episode of the Love and Leary Podcast, Rebecca Love and Marion Leary sit down with public health nurse and former USAID leader Jerilyn Hoover to discuss the sweeping impact of recent federal health funding cuts. Jerilyn shares a firsthand account of how the abrupt closure of global health programs disrupted HIV, maternal-child health, and workforce initiatives worldwide—contributing to devastating human consequences and the displacement of thousands of health workers.

The conversation also explores a critical but overlooked issue: the loss of nursing leadership within federal agencies and its long-term implications for healthcare policy and in...

On this episode of the Love n’ Leary Nursing Podcast, hosts Marion Leary and Rebecca Love welcome Katie Boston-Leary, Senior Vice President at the American Nurses Association, for a powerful conversation on advocacy, leadership, and the future of nursing. Katie shares why political and social advocacy are core to nursing’s identity and how the ANA is taking bold action in response to national events impacting health, human rights, and democracy. The discussion also explores the Department of Education’s proposed reclassification of nursing degrees and what it means for education access, workforce development, and the profession at large. This e...

Disclaimer: This episode discusses violence and the death of a healthcare worker. Listener discretion is advised.

In this critical episode of Love n’ Leary, Marion Leary and Rebecca Love address the killing of Alex Pretti, an ICU nurse in Minnesota, and what this moment demands of the nursing profession. Joined by Dr. Teddie Potter, clinical professor at the University of Minnesota and founding director of its Planetary Health Program, the conversation explores nursing’s moral obligation to speak out against injustice. Dr. Potter introduces the concept of “Code White,” a powerful, nonviolent act of collective advocacy...

In this episode of the Love n’ Leary Nursing Podcast, Marion Leary and Rebecca Love announce the podcast’s new partnership with Nurse.org and reflect on how this milestone represents the power of saying yes to opportunity. They revisit the early conversations that sparked the show, including imposter syndrome and career uncertainty, and connect those experiences to the broader responsibility of nurse leadership. The discussion explores advocacy, the importance of nurses using their voices with confidence, and how storytelling, policy engagement, and diverse communication platforms can expand nursing influence. Together, Marion and Rebecca emphasize how nurses can shape publ...

In our first live podcast recording from the AONL Nurse Hack 4 Health Innovation Sprint, we talk with colleagues from Johnson & Johnson and SONSIEL as well as nurse leaders from around the country about the importance of supporting nurses as innovators.

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The U.S. Department of Education (DOE) has proposed new rules that would narrow the definition of a "professional degree" for the purposes of federal student loans, potentially excluding graduate nursing, physician assistant (PA), and public health programs from specific higher loan limits (Google AI). There are many misconceptions around the educational requirements for various nursing degree programs. In this episode of the Love n' Leary podcast we talk with Kathryn Shaffer, EdD, RN, MSN, CNE, nurse educator and innovator, about the proposed new definition, the effect it would have on student loans for graduate nurses, the rigor of...

Nurses have the skills and knowledge to run for office and just by virtue of our education and experience, we are ready to govern. In this episode of the Love n' Leary podcast, we invited our colleague Dr. Danielle McCamey to join in the conversation, discussing our respective experiences going through the Healing Politics Campaign School for Nurses and Midwives. Healing Politics is an educational, non-partisan, non-profit 501(c)3 organization whose mission to inspire, motivate, recruit, & train nurses & midwives to run for elected office. Rebecca Love attended the program in 2023, Dr. McCamey attended in 2024, and Dr. Marion Leary attended the...

In part one of the Love n' Leary podcast, Dr. Marion Leary comes to you live from the 2025 Healing Politics Campaign School at Duke University. Healing Politics (https://healing-politics.org) is an educational, non-partisan, non-profit 501(c)3 organization whose mission is to inspire, motivate, recruit, & train nurses & midwives to run for elected office up & down the ballot while building a culture of civic engagement within the professions.

🎙️ About The Love & Leary Podcast

Thank you for tuning in to The Love n' Leary Podcast! If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a 5-star review, and s...

Today, on the Love n' Leary podcast, we are raising awareness among nurses and other providers about the risks of DEHP in IV bags and other medical devices. **This episode is sponsored by B. Braun, a pioneer of safe medical equipment. They are a leader in smart infusion therapy and safe and effective pharmacy products, patient and provider safety, and sustainable health solutions.**

🎙️ About The Love & Leary Podcast

Thank you for tuning in to The Love n' Leary Podcast! If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a 5-star review, and share it with...

In our first live, roaming podcast, we talk with nurse entrepreneurs and innovators at the AONL (https://www.aonl.org/) Nurse Innovation Showcase. Building on the theme, we showcase their companies and discuss why they felt compelled to take the leap (and risk) to fill a gap and create a healthcare start-up company.

🎙️ About The Love & Leary Podcast

Thank you for tuning in to The Love n' Leary Podcast! If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a 5-star review, and share it with a colleague.

🌐 Connect With Us