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I am an award-winning medical writer and journalist, and a registered nurse -- a former trauma nurse with extensive clinical experience. My work has been recognized with 23 writing awards from a variety of organizations and publishers.
I write for both healthcare practitioners and consumers in a variety of formats (including rewrites and substantive edits):
(Samples limited by copyright available on request)
I wrote 3 books for nurses & one trade paperback (see samples). My first book for nurses won the prestigious American Journal of Nursing Book of the Year Award.
I wrote weekly columns for the New York Daily News, Health & Money magazine, & for nurses.com
I particularly enjoy collaborative relationships with my clients in which they tell me what they want to achieve & I can then make suggestions on how I can help them meet their goals. I usually work on a project fee basis; rates are negotiable depending on length, research required, and the amount of work needed.
I love writing about my passions: healthcare, giving providers new information, & empowering patients. I strive to enhance my clients' credibility with my clinical background & experience.
I work with medical manufacturers & other clients to develop clinical & patient education materials & work with marketing copywriters to ensure content is clinically correct. These reviews include checking marketing photoshoots for clinical correctness such as proper glove use, accurate display of masks, including visible ID badges, & other “musts” in a clinical environment.
I taught a health literacy course for 5 years & published articles on its importance in writing & designing patient education materials. This theoretical framework informs my work writing for health consumers and developing content strategies.
I'm a teacher at heart & believe good writing is like good teaching; both succeed when conveying information that is easily understood. My graduate degree in instructional design & educational technology led me to write & produce video series for medical publishers & one broadcast special for PBS, based on my trade book.
One of my video series to teach clinical decision skills won a FREDDIE award for best series, tied with a much higher-budget TimeLife series. It recognized our originality using Steadicam(R) to represent the point of view of the clinician as s/he evaluated the patient.
I'm a longstanding member of the New England Chapter of the American Medical Writers Association & the Association of Healthcare Journalists. I recently joined the Medical Library Association to enhance my skills in searching the literature. My clients have always known my ability to provide comprehensive literature reviews, but with the changes coming to PubMed, I wanted to hone my skills.
I look forward to talking with you soon about your next project!
A review of common questions about the coronavirus vaccine, written the day after the Moderna vaccine received the Emergency Use Authorization from the FDA.
https://www.smerconish.com/criticalthinking/coronavirus-vaccine-faq
First chapter of trade paperback
http://patcarroll.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/WhatNursesKnow_Chapter1-sample.pdf
Winner of Ig Living Magazine's annual essay contest. The piece had to start with "The last time I did something for the first time...." and was to reflect the lived experience of a patient with a primary immune deficiency.
http://patcarroll.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Carroll-P-IgLiving-Essay.pdf
Clinical Update was a quarterly newsletter provided to nurses as a service by Atrium Medical Corporation. It began as a one-pager that could be taped on the back of the bathroom stall door (a common strategy for quick learning on busy hospital clinical units) and then evolved into a longer, electronically- delivered, evidence-based quarterly feature
http://patcarroll.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Clinical-Update-Library-Full-Archive.pdf
I was one of the first medical writers to contribute to sporting publications. The breakthrough was my piece on HIV infection that accompanied the package published when Ervin (Magic) Johnson announced he had HIV infection. I lobbied for my reported piece on the disease because I knew of the public health need to get that critical information to the readers of sports magazines and newspapers -- young men. Of all sports publications at the time, we were the only who addressed the disease.
http://patcarroll.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Carroll-P-The-Sporting-News-contributions.pdf
An article for practitioners describing basic principles of health literacy, how to quickly assess a patient's ability to read instructions, and strategies to design materials for poor readers, including mistakes to avoid.
An essay about my experiences as an emergency nurse,
http://patcarroll.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Carroll-To-be-a-Nurse.pdf
Write, as freelance, materials for health care professionals and health consumers. Consult with companies to verify the clinical validity of marketing content, both written and visual. Write multimedia scripts for instructional activities, including needs assessment, pre- and post-tests. Provide evidence reviews. Write blog posts and develop Web content strategies. https://www.patcarroll.net
Company: Educational Medical Consultants, LLC
I worked there from 5/1986 until now
• Facilitate virtual meetings for people with primary immune deficiency (PI), loved ones & caregivers, develop community for persons in CT & New England. Act as a resource for group members and newly diagnosed persons referred by healthcare providers; maintain www.CTZebras.com • Collaborate with National Organization for Rare Disorders and RARE-CT and work with Patients Rising to inform legislators, propose legislation and develop policy solutions essential to the PI and rare disease community
Company: CT Zebras
I worked there from 12/2018 until now
• Analyze quality indicators, design, implement & evaluate quality improvement activities, promote evidence-based practice, assign ICD-9 codes, develop related policies & procedures to gather clinical data to maximize reimbursement, coordinate infection control activities & provide staff development for this CHAP & Medicare-certified agency • Coordinator for Yale University School of Nursing clinical community health experience
Company: Franciscan Home Care and Hospice Care
I worked there from 5/2006 until 9/2009
• Coordinate health screenings, provide education to clients and staff, and facilitate community referrals for clients of this homeless shelter (as a volunteer) • Provide education for clients with chronic conditions to enable self-management, e.g., teaching patients with diabetes how to monitor blood sugar, draw up and inject insulin (this required cultural changes, as clients were not used to using new needles for each injection; if they kept them on the street, they would be robbed.)
Company: Shelter NOW
I worked there from 11/2001 until 5/2004
Provided comprehensive emergency nursing care in this busy community ED with >50,000 visits/year, board-certified in emergency nursing, instructor/provider Emergency Nursing Trauma Course; Instructor/provider Emergency Nursing Pediatric Course, Instructor, Course in Advanced Trauma Nursing, annual verification in Advanced Cardiac Life Support, Advanced Trauma Life Support
Company: Manchester Memorial Hospital
I worked there from 4/1990 until 10/2001
Taught 400-level concentration in health care education for students who entered with Associate degrees in a health discipline. Courses included : HSC424 Health Care Education: Methods and Strategies, HSC413 Principles of Teaching and Learning, HSC434 Health Literacy Issues and Solutions Used Blackboard online platform LMS
Company: Excelsior College
I worked there from /2008 until /2015