PSNA Member Highlight
Ashlee Homer, RN
On September 28, 2016, PSNA Young Nurse Professional Ashlee
Homer, RN, testified before the House Children & Youth Committee regarding neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS). Ashlee is
a full-time pediatric acute care staff nurse at Penn State Health
Milton S. Hershey Medical Center.
Ashlee’s passions are nursing and patient care. She believes that
a part of nursing care is understanding practice and continuing
professional development. As a co-lead on a children’s hospital
fall prevention program, she has helped to create and implement
a tool to understand the education and practice gaps between
nursing and the patient or patient’s family. The program continues to use the tool to decrease the number of falls with injuries.
She believes that the work is successful due to the input of the
bedside nurse in understanding quality indicators.
In Fall 2016, Ashlee will be one of two RNs representing PSNA
at the American Nurses Association’s American Nurses Advocacy Institute (ANAI) in Washington, DC. ANAI is a prestigious year-long mentored program for the purpose of developing nurses into political leaders while expanding the grassroots
capacity for the nursing profession and healthcare.
See below for a copy of Ashlee’s testimony.
Good afternoon Chairwoman Watson, Chairman Conklin and members of the Committee. My name is Ashlee Homer and I
am a pediatric acute care registered nurse at Penn State Hershey Medical Center. I am also a member of the Pennsylvania
State Nurses Association.
Neonatal abstinence syndrome (also called NAS) happens when a baby is exposed to drugs in the womb before birth. NAS
is most often caused when a woman takes opioids during her pregnancy. Subsequently, her baby can experience drug withdrawal after birth.
Taking care of NAS babies requires extra resources. Each baby responds to withdrawal in a different way. Nurses must
find the balance between meeting the medical and social needs for each baby and their family while determining how best to
provide nursing care for each one individually. Some infants do better with nearly constant movement while holding them.
Others do better in a dark, non-stimulating environment. It is heartbreaking to watch these smallest patients cry inconsolably and feed uncoordinated. This can cause growth delays, tremors and sometimes seizures. The child may also experience
very limited to no bonding experiences with its parents. stay and the cost of care. NICU amounts to thousands of dollars a
day to the health insurer, family, the state Medicaid program and taxpayers.
PSNA members can click here to read the complete testimony.
Fall 2016 Pennsylvania Nurse 11