Highly acclaimed photographer/author executive produced, directed The American Nurse: Healing America

SCHAUMBURG, Ill. (Jan. 7, 2019) – The Emergency Nurses Association on Monday proudly announced a partnership with renowned filmmaking team Carolyn Jones Productions on a documentary project which celebrates emergency nurses and the impact they have on patients across the country.

Jones’ career has centered on passionate and personal storytelling which highlights invisible populations and breaks down barriers. In 2003, she founded the non-profit 100 People Foundation which creates educational films and curricula for participating students in over 90 countries.

Her first book, Living Proof: Courage in the Face of AIDS, was featured at events worldwide, including the United Nations World AIDS Conference.

In 2012, she published the critically-acclaimed book The American Nurse, which was featured in The New York Times, The Washington Post and USA Today. She directed and executive produced the follow-up documentary film, The American Nurse: Healing America, which was released in theaters nationwide and was an official selection of the 2015 American Film Showcase, a cultural diplomacy program of the U.S. Department of State.

Her newest film,Defining Hope, represents the culmination of a journey investigating how we can make better end-of-life choices. It was awarded Best Premiere-Documentary Feature at the Heartland Film Festival and began airing on PBS stations nationwide in 2018.

“Emergency nurses do amazing things every single day. They put their patients first without any thought of reward or recognition,” said ENA President Patricia Kunz Howard, PhD, RN, CEN, CPEN, TCRN, NE-BC, FAEN, FAAN. “With Carolyn’s unique style and approach to storytelling, this documentary will pay a proper tribute to that selflessness by showing the world the complicated, yet rewarding, work that defines emergency nursing and the people who are committed to care.”

Jones, who has already conducted dozens of interviews at six locations across the United States for the yet-to-be-titled film, said she is eager to shed light on some of the biggest public health challenges facing Americans today, as well as the opportunity that emergency nurses have to help break a sometimes-vicious cycle for patients under their care.

“Everyone agrees that our health care system is broken and, like it or not, people wind up going to the emergency department to seek care – whether it’s for primary care or a major trauma,” Jones said. “Emergency nurses have a unique opportunity to see patients at their most vulnerable, on what is likely the worst day of their life, and to intervene to not only save a patient’s life, but also provide resources that can dramatically improve their health moving forward.”

No release date has been set for the documentary. Follow @ENAorg on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram for updates on the project’s progress.

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About Carolyn Jones Productions

Carolyn Jones Productions is best known for producing socially proactive documentary films and photography, using a variety of media tools to create projects that point our attention toward issues of global concern. The team is comprised of award-winning filmmakers led by Executive Producer and Director Carolyn Jones, and including Producer Lisa Frank, Cinematographer Jaka Vinšek and Editors Laura Israel and Chelsea Smith. For more information about Carolyn Jones Productions, visit www.carolynjones.com.