Monica The Nurse Practitioner

PART TWO - (watch and read the caption!!!) Share with someone who can use it!!♥️

The second question I’m always asked is “how do I get into women’s health an NP if I don’t have an L&D background?”

WATCH THE VIDEO FOR SEVERAL TIPS …. And here are some more!!!!

1. APPLY APPLY APPLY!!! Do not let lack of experience make you shy away from applying to your dream job and dream specialty!!! There are so many amazing providers (many in academic institutions but also TONS in private practice) who will take you under their wing and TRAIN YOU!!! You have the foundation, on the job training is realistically what so many providers get to help them become the amazing provider they are!! We see it with Derm/Aesthetics ALL THE TIME!!! Seek out opportunities where they won’t will guide and mentor you!

2. Consider going back to school or obtaining an additional certificate and also diving into the conference scene. I’ve learned SO MUCH at high quality conferences, and reinforce what I learn in practice. Many of the procedures I’ve learned, I got to practice and become formally certified AT CONFERENCES. (So negotiate that CME MONEY!!!)

3. MAXIMIZE clinical rotations! Do more, seek out opportunities to shadow and get a mentor.

4. Play up the experience you DO have. It doesn’t have to be paid experience to be experience!

Best of luck to all of you and Happy NP Week!!!

If you missed part one - I discussed why I chose FNP over WHNP.

PART ONE (save for later!) - I get asked this question SO OFTEN. Why did I choose the Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) track over the Women’s Health NP (WHNP) track. Honestly, I had to do the best I could with the information and opportunities I had!

FOR ME -
1. The FNP program could be done part-time and I needed to work fulltime to help out myself through school AND to satisfy the terms of the amazing scholarship I received from Georgetown University.

2. The WHNP track was a dual degree and I didn’t want to be a CNM (with what I know now, I MAY have made a different decision because you don’t necessarily have to use both parts of the degree)

3. To me, FNP seemed more marketable because the job postings (even for specialities) were asking for FNPs.

4. It was what I was most familiar with (I had FNP mentors!)

5. I received a scholarship that paid 80% ( and ultimately 100%) of my NP education at Georgetown University for the FNP program if I continued to work full-time as an RN.

WHNP is an amazing degree track and I talk more about that …. AND how to break into women’s health with no experience in PART TWO!!! Part two is posted on my page next to this video!!!

What NP track did you take? Any regrets??!!

Save for later!!! Did you know you can actually calculate your Breast Cancer risk?!? It’s so easy and it’s FREE!!!

Though not the only risk calculator, I love the Tyrer-Cuzick Breast Cancer Risk calculation tool. You input pertinent information, and then it’ll give you a 10-year and lifetime Breast Cancer risk. Generally, lifetime is characterized by “70 years-old” but I love that we are living longer than that!!!

You can use the info from your Tyrer-Cuzick score to guide your healthcare provider to offer you increased and appropriate surveillance such as imaging, referral to a specialist or even discussing genetic testing and risk-reducing surgery.

Our radiologists actually include patients’ Breast Cancer risk score on their mammogram report!!! They include recommendations for more imaging, establishing care in our high-risk Breast Cancer clinic etc!! Great radiologists are truly the secret sauce😍

If you have dense breast tissue, you’ll likely qualify for additional screenings as well! Your mammogram should tell you if your breasts are you ”heterogeneously dense” or have “scattered density” or “mostly fatty” etc.

If you find this helpful, please share with your friends and family! Happy Breast Cancer Awareness Month! My love goes out to all of you who have been fought this disease, or love someone who has fought or is still in the fight!💖💖💖💖💖💖

Because sometimes we have to save ourselves!!! She knew something wasn’t right, she knew her body and that something was off and she KNEW a normal screening mammogram, normal diagnostic mammogram and a “benign-appearing” mass on MRI did NOT feel NORMAL!

Advocating for yourself can be scary, but, it can save your life. Here are a few tips to help your when it’s your turn to speak up:

💖 Bring a friend or spouse to your appointment to be a second set of ears/eyes.
💖 Ask questions
💖 Come prepared with some baseline knowledge regarding your symptoms, screenings and possible management options (this is the info age y’all!)
💖 Don’t be afraid to get a second… or third opinion.
💖 Verbalize you feel “strongly” that you’d like more imaging/diagnostic options if you’re told everything is normal.
💖 Trust your gut/intuition. You know you best!
💖 If you have a family history of Breast Cancer OR dense breast tissue - you could qualify for earlier and/or enhanced surveillance (MRI/Ultrasound/more frequent imaging, genetic testing etc!)

Happy Breast Cancer Awareness Month! Feel free to share your own stories/tips and schedule those mammograms💕💖🫶🏽

For the sunnies at the end of the reel (hands down the best and under $20), comment “glasses” and I’ll DM the link!!!

SAVE! It’s Breast Cancer Awareness Month!🥰💓💞 So many of you asked me to make this a reel, which makes me so happy because info like this is what MATTERS🥹.

Because Black women are 40% more likely to die from Breast Cancer, despite being diagnosed at similar rates as our White counterparts 💔 - it’s so important to SHARE this info with your girls and have personal awareness of your personal and family history, risk factors and screening guidelines. It’s also imperative to seek healthcare advice from someone who listens to you, go prepared for your visit and take up space - ask questions!!!

Here’s what we can do to lower risk and take charge of our health:

💓Know your family history & ask about genetic testing.
If you have two or more family members with a BRCA gene related cancer or Lynch Syndrome associated cancer - you could qualify! Think of these cancers - breast, uterine, ovarian, colon, prostate, pancreatic, stomach and melanoma. This list is not exhaustive of ALL hereditary cancers.
💓Nourish your body with whole foods and movement
💓Avoid smoking & keep alcohol intake low
💓Keep up with screenings (earlier if you’re high-risk). Standard is yearly mammograms at 40 and once a decade colonoscopies at 45. If you have a family history of Breast Cancer, dense breast tissue or other factors - you may need earlier or more frequent screenings. If you have polyps in the colon, or have a family of colon cancer, you may need more frequent screenings.

Sending massive love to those in the fight💖, those who have lost loved ones to Breast Cancer❤️‍🩹 and to those who have beat it!!!👊🏽 Let’s keep uplifting each other, breaking down barriers, sharing the love (and knowledge) and demanding better care for ALL women. 💖

And shoutout to all the 1986 babies who are starting their routine screening mammograms next year!!!!! 1985 ladies - did you get your mammogram this year already?!?! Love you all! Share with a friend, save for later, feel on the 🥥🥥, get your mammograms and wear some pink this month!