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Op-ed Articles by RUSH Public Voices Fellows

College of Nursing
College of Nursing

RUSH University’s College of Nursing “Public Voices Fellowship,” now in its second year, is a prestigious program offered in partnership with The OpEd Project - an organization working to dramatically increase the public impact of our nation’s top underrepresented thought leaders. The fellowship provides a select and diverse cohort of approximately 20 participants with extraordinary resources, skills and support over the course of nine months to ensure their ideas shape not only the work in their field, but also the greater public conversations of our age.

In 2017, our first cohort of RUSH Nursing fellows published 53 articles in just five months. All 22 participants reported that the experience was transformational both professionally and personally. Now in our second year, RUSH Nursing fellows continue to display their expertise and passion nationally on current societal, cultural, and health issues.

Browse the original op-ed pieces from RUSH University College of Nursing cohorts:

AuthorPublicationTitle
Angela MossGarnetWe Need To Talk about Suicide: Please have a Conversation
Mellisa KalenskyThe HillDeath vs. Debt: This is Why we Need Health Insurance Guarantees
Michelle HeylandGarnetHotlines and Deadends: Community-Based Programs Work to Prevent Suicide
Michelle HeylandThe HillAfter Mass Shootings, Mental Illness is Always the Scapegoat
Rebecca DarmocInside Higher EdWe Still Don’t Get It: Diversity Marketing Must Be More than Skin Deep
Amber KujathMediumBeyond Scary: A Need All Year for Nurses Specializing in Bones
Melissa KalenskyHuffPoDon’t Be Scared: 4 Keys for Breast Cancer Screening, Treatment Access
Monique ReedPacific StandardNo Sweet Deal: Why Taxing Sugary Beverages is a Must
Rhonda OwensMS.Power (and Mentorship) For Girls!
Shannon HallowayMediumDemential Awareness and Prevention Should Start Earlier
Wrenetha JulionScientific AmericanBias Begins Much Too Early: We Need to Start Eliminating Disparities in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU)
Barbara ShawTruthoutRipple Effects: DACA’s Future Affects the Healthcare of All Americans
Angela JohnsonGarnetIntegrative Medicine as a Part of Cancer Treatment: The Efficacy of a West Meets East Approach
Dawn BoundsChicago ReporterTaking MeToo Conversation Beyond Sexual harassment
Dawn BoundsMediumParents Beware: The Stranger Danger is in Your Home
Erik McIntoshRole Reboot#Bullied: Stop The Harassment of Our LGBTQ Youth
Erik McIntoshMorning ConsultSafe Spaces: Train more To Better Serve LGBTQ
Heide CyganMottoWhy we shouldn’t be afraid to talk about our miscarriages
Rachel StartWorld CongressInterview on ambulatory nurses
Melissa KalenskyStat NewsMore Than Minions
Angela MossMediumAccess To health Care: America’s Real Health Crisis for Insured
Susan SwiderLARBHealth's Social Determinants: Nurses Are Key to Addressing Better Outcomes
Susan BuchholzNext AvenueWalking to avoid winter weight gain
Barbara ShawWashington Post The Lily#MyMotherToo: It’s time to pay attention to elder sexual abuse
Alice GeisMediumLet Healers Heal with Medicare for All
Rachel StartThe HillUse nurses as keys to connect the dots in better healthcare
Rhonda OwensChicago ReporterFocusing on violence misses the bigger story about Chicago
Monique ReedThe GrioTo all Black families: Remember to speak up about health concerns today
Dawn BoundsGarnet NewsTime to expose those who fuel sex trafficking demand
Michelle HeylandMorning ConsultViolence at inpatient psychiatric facilities
Alice GeisThe HillWorkplace wellness programs
Erik McIntoshLARBViewer Beware: We Need More LGBTQ TV role models for kids
Rachel StartGarnet NewsThe Bullying Stops Here
Raechel Ferry-RooneyHuffPoCompromise is possible in the gun control debate
Angela JohnsonMediumCo-authored with Mona Shatell on digital detox
Shannon Halloway and Melissa KalenskyThe Healthcare blogCo-authored on need to address Alzheimer’s prevention earlier
Monique ReedGarnet newsBlack Girls Move
Shannon HallowayNext AvenueShould loneliness be the next vital sign?
Wrenetha JulionStat NewsBlack mothers are dying: the toll of racism on maternal health
Lynn MohrWashington PostThe conversation to have with teens who want tattoos
Melissa KalenskyThe HillFix what we’ve got and make Medicare right this year
Sally LemkeThe Hechinger ReportWe can’t afford not to supply school-based healthcare
Michelle HeylandThe HillThe danger of diagnosing mental illness through the media
Michelle HeylandMorning ConsultThe issue of managing mental health crisis in emergency departments
Susan Buchholz and Shannon HallowayGarnet NewsIt’s time to learn a new language: Being nilingual benefits your brain
Rhonda OwensGarnet NewsA Black Woman’s Ballot Box
Shannon Halloway and Diana TaylorThe HillWe all need to be concerned about national health policies
Susan Buchholz and Sarah AileyThe HillAmended disability act
Lynn MohrMorning ConsultScreen Time and Family Time: Healthy Ways to Make It All Work
Lynn MohrGarnet NewsWhat do you tell your kids about social media? 
Barbara ShawChicago TribuneFear, anxiety, apprehension
Wrenetha JulionTruthoutIs The American Dream Over For Black Boys?
Angela MossMorning ConsultCredibility Gap: Better Health Care Means Inviting Nurses Into Decision-Making
Dawn BoundsGarnet NewsBullycide
Lois PlattThe HillThere’s A New Drug Crisis Harming Americans
Todd RupparScientific AmericanHas Your Health Insurance Really Got You Covered?
Janice PhillipsGarnet NewsAging Out: An Honest Look at What Happens to Foster Children
Karen DeCockerGarnet NewsThe Credible Victim
Josie Howard-RubenThe HillSesame - A Hidden Danger Prompts Urgent Need for US Labeling
Colleen ChiericiThe HillThe Cost of Not Talking About Death to Dying Patients
Kate WebsterGarnet NewsWomen Follow Dr. Ford’s Lead
Stephanie GarciaGarnet NewsWhy Girls Should Stay Off Social Media Until Age 16
Jan OdiagaThe HillHealthcare Shortage Can Be Solved by Increased Funding for Education and Training
Elizabeth StewartChicago TribuneFaith or Fallacy? Alternative Treatments Failed My Mother
Todd RupparThe HillPublicized Drug Prices will be Meaningless to the Consumer
Margaret BavisBuzzFlashThis November, I’m Voting for my Patients
Janice PhillipsMorning ConsultHealth Care Meets the Voting Booth: Why Housing Policies Determine Wellness
Mallory BejsterAJN BlogWhat can nurses do to influence health in their communities?
Terry GallagherUSA TodayAustralia is about to eradicate cervical cancer, US is nowhere close
Olimpia PaunNBC ThinkLoneliness is an epidemic with real public health consequences. Friends alone can’t solve it.
Lois PlattThe HillNo longer banned: Thanksgiving welcome for new Americans
Josie Howard-RubenThe HillHappy Thanksgiving: Make sure everyone’s food is allergen-free
Janice Phillips, Mallory BejsterThe HillLet’s give thanks to nurses
Kate WebsterHechinger Report3 ways that colleges can support underrepresented students after the Harvard case
Janice Phillips, Maria AlonsoThe HillHealth Care Access and Delays: A True Crisis in America
Colleen ChiericiThe HillHealth Care Gap: Miners Shine Light on National Access Problem
Colleen ChiericiPacific StandardThe Much-Ignored Emissions Costs of Health Care
Tricia KiernyThe HillIs homelessness hopeless? Ending the crisis is urgent
Janice PhillipsScientific AmericanUnfair Diagnosis: Socioeconomic Gap Drives Cancer Outcomes
Mary HeitschmidtMs. Magazine BlogHelping Girls and Women Win
Terry GallagherThe HillAnti-vax and anti-abortion movements are filled with misinformation
Josie Howard-RubenScientific AmericanThe Dangers of Flying While Allergic
Lois PlattGarnet NewsGet your kid vaccinated 
Terry GallagherUS News & World ReportHomelessness Is a National Crisis
Margaret BavisMs. Magazine BlogPress Refresh: It’s Time to Change the Narrative Around Nursing
Maria Alonso-GarciaLatino USAThe Wall Is Here: Fighting Everyday Racism, Hate at Work
Janice PhillipsThe HillWe must develop social policies that will address the needs of the ‘hidden faces’
Aney AbrahamMorning ConsultSocial media: How and why nurses need it
Lois PlattGarnet NewsAlcohol and Sexual Assault 
Josie Howard-RubenThe HillDid kale lose its superstar status?
Terry GallagherUSA TodayDrug overdoses go viral: Social media videos exploit personal tragedy, ‘trauma’ for likes
Colleen ChiericiThe HillAir pollution discriminates
Janice PhillipsThe HillThe time to solve America’s health care crisis is way overdue
Ingrid ForsbergThrive GlobalKeep quiet: Stay calm, focused, silent and reduce stress
Aney Abraham, Janice PhillipsThe HillNotre Dame can’t be more urgent than people without food and shelter
Janice Phillips, Colleen ChiericiThe HillNurses aren’t sitting around playing cards, they’re solving global health
Terry GallagherGarnet NewsBlood Work: Elizabeth Holmes, Theranos & the Abilene Paradox
Aney AbrahamReflections on Nursing LeadershipI’m proud to be a nurse!
Olimpia PaunThe HillIt’s time to support family caregivers
Elizabeth StewartGarnet NewsNurses show Trump the way
Josie Howard-RubenMorning ConsultKey ACA provisions help keep 32 million Americans with food allergies safer
Colleen ChiericiThe HillThere’s a War on Clean Air and Our Children Will Suffer
Terry GallagherChicago TribuneFake Nancy Pelosi video is a reminder that mockery of stuttering needs to stop
Mary HeitschmidtUS News & World ReportFocus on People, Not Pre-Existing Conditions
Janice PhillipsScientific AmericanRace Matters to the Health of African-American Men
Olimpia Paun and Mallory BejsterAJN BlogIn Nursing, Empathy is a Practice to Cultivate
Terry Gallagher and Angela MossThe HillConnecting the dots on social determinants of health
Janice Phillips and Aney AbrahamThe HillLack of personal hygience products: Violation of human rights for incarcerated women
Mary HeitschmidtThe HillVaping is a public health crisis for US children
Janice PhillipsThe HillEducation is the key to escaping a life of poverty and poor health