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Off The Clock: Nurse Joelle Changes Lives Through Humanitarian Nursing
By Maggie Aime, MSN, RN
HUMANITARIAN GOALS
You should be able to go out there and give the care and make the necessity of you being there completely obsolete.
BREAKING INTO HUMANITARIAN NURSING
Jumping into action is never really over for some nurses. Take Joelle Stack, BS in Public Health, BSN, RN, CCRN, TCRN, and Humanitarian Nurse Educator, for instance. As a flight nurse, she takes to the skies by day, saving lives. But when her shift ends, Joelle doesn't hang up her scrubs. Instead, she grabs her passport and lifts off again, this time with a mission to cross borders and teach in conflict zones.
This high-flying humanitarian didn't start her journey in the air, though. Joelle's path began on solid ground with a public health degree and a brief taste of international work that left her craving more. "I wanted to take a more hands-on approach to health," Joelle explained, "so I went almost immediately from public health into a nursing program."
We wound up teaching in a bomb shelter because that's where it was safe, and we wanted to continue teaching.
But even with a nursing degree, her critical care training, and a passion for helping others, breaking into the world of humanitarian work proved tougher than expected. Joelle spent two years knocking on doors that seemed permanently locked. "It was super hard," she admitted. "I wound up emailing my resume probably 15 times to this one organization that I just really wanted to work with," she laughed.
Finally, her determination paid off. With just two weeks' notice, Joelle found herself on a plane to Ukraine, ready to teach AHA classes for BLS, ACLS, and PALS to some of the most eager students she'd ever encountered. This mission confirmed what she'd suspected all along: this was her calling. Although she recognizes the healthcare needs within U.S. communities, she also understands that many people in other regions and countries lack access to the level of care and expertise available in the States.
TEACHING IN THE MIDST OF CONFLICT
Her students were a diverse group of healthcare professionals: doctors, nurses, and nurses on ambulance trucks. In Ukraine, nurses often take on roles similar to paramedics in other countries, working on ambulances and providing pre-hospital care.
The experience was eye-opening. “It was a brand new certification for them and nothing that they've ever had before,” Joelle explained.
She soon found herself involved with multiple organizations, each offering unique opportunities to make a difference. MedGlobal, based in Chicago, provided her first foray into humanitarian work. Through them, she connected with the David Nott Foundation, a London-based nonprofit founded by a war trauma surgeon who taught medical professionals in conflict zones how to handle severe injuries.
ACRONYMS EXPLAINED
- BS - Bachelor of Science
- BSN - Bachelor of Science in Nursing
- RN - Registered Nurse
- CCRN - Critical Care Registered Nurse
- TCRN - Trauma Certified Registered Nurse
- AHA - American Heart Association
- ICU - Intensive Care Unit
- BLS - Basic Life Support
- ACLS - Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support
- PALS - Pediatric Advanced Life Support
ORGANIZATIONS MENTIONED
MEDGLOBAL
medglobal.org
DAVID NOTT FOUNDATION
davidnottfoundation.com
Joelle's involvement with the David Nott Foundation led to a second trip to Ukraine in February 2024. This time, the focus was on community needs assessment. "We were going in and talking to anyone and everyone who we could," she said. The results of these assessments pointed to critical needs in emergency services, nursing education, ICU nursing, and surgical wound care management.
Now, Joelle is part of a team developing a comprehensive five-day training program for nurse paramedics. The goal? To equip healthcare providers in conflict zones with the skills to handle everything from blast injuries to prolonged critical care in areas cut off from higher-level medical facilities.
“We’re covering a whole bunch of topics,” Joelle said excitedly. “We plan to pilot it in October in Kyiv [the capital of Ukraine] and then Somalia in November.”
MANAGING DUAL ROLES
When asked about balancing her volunteer work with her nursing career, Joelle revealed it all comes down to a dash of determination, some strategic planning, and a welcome dose of workplace flexibility
“I’ve kind of tailored my life to prioritize these [humanitarian] projects,” Joelle admitted, revealing that her choice of flight nursing isn’t just about the thrill of working in the air. It’s a strategic decision that allows her the flexibility to pursue her humanitarian work.
The key to making it all work? A schedule that gives her ample time off between shifts. “I work for four days, and I’m off for almost two weeks,” she explained. This arrangement allows her to jet off to international missions without sacrificing her nursing career.
Of course, even the best-laid plans sometimes need a little flexibility. Joelle acknowledged the importance of a supportive work environment in making her dual commitments possible. Her colleagues and managers often accommodate last-minute schedule changes when humanitarian opportunities arise.
THE UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE OF CARE
For Joelle, the true reward of her humanitarian work comes from the human connections she forms in the most unlikely places.
She recalled a pivotal moment at the U.S.-Mexico border: “A mom came rushing in, just yelling and scared, holding a baby.” Despite a closed clinic and no translators, Joelle and her team improvised. They communicated via Google Translate while assessing the baby, who was having a seizure due to a fever, and administered Tylenol. Sometimes, simply being present and willing to help can make all the difference in a crisis.
These bonds extend far beyond immediate care. “I still talk to a lot of my Ukrainian counterparts,” Joelle noted. “We check in every so often to see how they’re doing and how their family is. It’s just that human piece of not throwing education or patient care at them, but making a connection, being human.”
RESILIENCE IN THE FACE OF RISK
Working in conflict zones comes with its risks, but Joelle approaches it with practicality and respect for the locals’ resilience. Seeing people living in conflict zones carry on with their daily lives amid challenging conditions motivates her to push through her own concerns. She thought if they can endure such conditions daily, she can undoubtedly brave them to provide vital training and support for a few days.
It’s hard, and it’s heavy, but the feelings come up when you don’t let yourself feel it sometimes.
This resilience was put to the test during one of her missions when safety concerns forced an unexpected change of venue. “We wound up teaching in a bomb shelter because that’s where it was safe, and we wanted to continue teaching,” Joelle recalled. “Our five-day class was just underground the whole time.”
To say that the emotional impact of humanitarian work is significant would be an understatement. “It’s hard, and it’s heavy, but the feelings come up when you don’t let yourself feel it sometimes,” Joelle shared. But she has found ways to cope. She stressed the importance of processing these experiences by talking about them with others who’ve been there.
A GUIDE TO HUMANITARIAN NURSING
If you want to get started and participate, be prepared to be the most persistent email in someone’s inbox. This nugget of wisdom from Joelle captures her approach to breaking into humanitarian nursing.
She also emphasized the importance of due diligence. “Do very good research on the organization that you align yourself with, what kind of work they do, and why they do it,” she advised. This helps ensure your efforts contribute to meaningful, sustainable change. It also prevents inadvertently supporting what she calls “voluntourism”—a trend where volunteers pay to participate in projects abroad, often combining tourism with short-term volunteer work. While well-intentioned, these programs can sometimes prioritize the volunteer’s experience over sustainable help for the community they serve.
Instead, she advocates for approaches that empower local healthcare providers and build lasting infrastructure. “You should be able to go out there and give the care and make the necessity of you being there completely obsolete,” Joelle explained. Why? Through this approach, communities can stand on their own feet in healthcare rather than relying on temporary foreign volunteers.
If you had any doubt, Joelle’s adventures prove that our nursing skills, compassion, and determination can create change anywhere. Whether you’re drawn to global missions or local community work, wherever your nursing path leads, cherish the connections you make, and never underestimate the power of a well-timed Tylenol. After all, in humanitarian nursing, the sky isn’t the limit. It’s just the beginning.
