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The ISPN Board would like to join the choir of sorrow in the senseless loss of a 37-year-old Veterans Health Administration ICU nurse from Minneapolis: Alex Pretti. While this event occurred approximately a week ago, the aftermath of this loss will reverberate through the Pretti family, the Minneapolis community, the United States, and the nursing community worldwide in perpetuity. Nursing remains the most trusted profession, and as such, we are called to social action to speak out against injustice whenever we observe it. As psychiatric-mental health nurses at ISPN, we deal with life and death issues within our patient populations and our personal lives. As a profession, we collectively grieve and will experience "vicarious trauma" felt by colleagues who may now perceive their environment—or the government they work for—as unsafe. We know and experience the deep impact of trauma and violence as we grieve the senseless loss of Alex’s life. Nothing prepares us for the sudden, immediate end of a life that still holds so much potential. ISPN is a community of psychiatric-mental health nurses grounded in inclusion, advocacy, care, belonging, and safety. These are the values we return to in the face of horrific and tragic moments.
At ISPN, we continue to work to draw our eyes away from the evils and injustices of the world as we turn toward things that INSPIRE us personally and professionally. Keeping a steady gaze at the future, we all dream of what we can be while honoring the past and those we lost along the way. So, what can we do now? The ISPN Board continues to work for all its members and the broader psychiatric-mental health nursing community to create a space to nurture one another through difficult times. The ISPN Board has held virtual “listening sessions” to come together and reflect as a collective, take into account what is happening today, and support one another for a brighter tomorrow. ISPN continues to offer educational opportunities that help us professionals deal with trauma and the impacts it has socially, psychologically, and physically. We know that evidence suggests that nurses are at disproportionate risk for violence, and will continue to speak out against workplace violence and broader violence against nurses who are providing care in clinical and non-clinical settings. Lastly, we want to continue highlighting the very timely series, Policy not Politics, which will run through most of 2026. This is free for ISPN members and provides ways to address social injustices locally, regionally, and nationally.
In closing, I ask all of us at ISPN to take a moment to check in on our colleagues and friends in our nursing community. This is not a time to be alone but to unite and lean into each other. It does not take long to text, chat, or call someone to make sure they are feeling safe and supported. While there is no bringing back Alex Pretti, nurses will continue to care for all those in their communities and hold a mirror up to the injustices of society, both inside and outside the healthcare systems where we work. We honor Alex Pretti, and at ISPN, we strive to uphold the values he clearly exhibited in the final moments of his life.
Respectfully submitted by ISPN board,
Daniel Wesemann, DNP, MSW, PMHNP-BC, FAANP, FAAN
Current President ISPN
Brayden Kameg, PhD, DNP, PMHNP-BC, CARN-AP, CNE, FAAN, FIAAN
President Elect ISPN
Barbara Peterson, PhD, PMHCNS-BC, APRN, FNAP
Immediate past President ISPN
Shawn Gallagher, PhD, PMHNP-BC, PMHCNS-BC, FNP-BC
Treasurer ISPN
Amanda Baltierra, DNP, MPH, FNP-BC, PMHNP-BC
Director ISPN
Susan L. Glodstein, DNP, RN, PMHNP-BC, PMHCNS-BC
Director ISPN
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