‍A Podcast Rooted in Prevention

Emily Chow was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, where UV protection is just as important on a foggy morning as it is on a sunny beach day. Like many adolescents, she initially disliked sunscreen—the texture, the inconvenience, the lack of immediate reward. But everything changed when she started researching skin cancer for herself.

Through that process, she uncovered alarming statistics: one in five Americans will develop skin cancer in their lifetime, and approximately 9,500 people are diagnosed every day. She also learned a truth many adults overlook—skin cancer risk often starts building in childhood and adolescence. With that knowledge, she turned discomfort into direction.

The result? SunSun: The Podcast, a twice-monthly show aimed at educating adolescents about UV protection, the dangers of prolonged sun exposure, and how early habits can protect long-term health. Topics include the science behind sun damage, myths about sunscreen, and perspectives from dermatology and primary care professionals. Emily also plans to feature guest experts to amplify credible voices and reinforce preventive health practices for her peers. If you’d like to be considered, please contact her directly.

What Makes Emily’s Work So Important

Emily’s podcast is more than an educational tool, it’s a public health intervention. Adolescents are often left out of conversations about UV protection, despite being a critical population in the fight against skin cancer. Emily understands that prevention doesn’t begin in residency or clinical training; it begins with awareness, early behavior modeling, and youth-led advocacy.

She also brings something essential to the conversation: relatability. As someone who once dismissed the importance of sunscreen, her transformation is both honest and instructive. That’s what makes her podcast so powerful: it’s not a lecture from an expert; it’s a conversation with someone walking the same path.

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A Model for Clinicians and Creators Alike

There’s another layer to Emily’s work that deserves recognition. In a space where professionals often feel unqualified to launch content until they’ve earned another credential or completed another training, Emily is a refreshing counterexample. She didn’t wait for permission or validation. She started with passion, research, and a desire to serve, and that’s more than enough.

Her story is especially important for nurse entrepreneurs and health content creators who find themselves stuck in cycles of impostor syndrome or overthinking. If you’ve ever told yourself, “I’m not ready,” or “Who am I to teach this?” Emily’s example challenges that narrative. She reminds us that the real question isn’t, “Am I ready?” It’s, “Who am I helping by staying silent?”

So if you’re a nurse, NP, and/or entrepreneur sitting on a podcast idea, curriculum module, or patient education series, this is your sign. You don’t need to be perfect to be impactful. You just need to begin.

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Implications for Nursing Practice, DNP Projects, and PhD Research

Emily’s initiative underscores an urgent gap in adolescent skin health education, a gap nursing is uniquely positioned to address. As dermatology nurses and nurse practitioners, we are often the first to encounter patients unaware of the cumulative damage from UV exposure. Yet, adolescent-focused sun protection programs remain scarce, especially in underserved or racially diverse communities where awareness and access are limited.

From a nursing practice lens, Emily’s podcast is not only a preventive tool, it’s a model for early intervention. Nurses in school-based health settings, pediatric primary care, and community health can integrate UV education into routine care, summer programming, or peer-led wellness initiatives. Nurse-led interventions focused on adolescent health literacy could drastically shift long-term skin cancer outcomes. This is especially true for skin of color patients, where there are high rates of underdiagnosis, late-stage diagnosis, and a lack of public health awareness.

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DNP Project Idea: Nurse-Led UV Protection Curriculum for Middle and High Schools

Title: “Project RAYS: Raising Adolescent Youth Sun-Awareness: A Nurse-Led UV Protection Intervention”

Problem: Adolescents receive limited education on the risks of UV exposure and the importance of sun protection. This lack of early education contributes to higher lifetime skin cancer risk, particularly among youth with skin of color, who may underestimate their vulnerability due to misperceptions about melanin and immunity to UV damage.

Intervention:

Establish a Task Force to implement a four-week, evidence-based UV protection curriculum in partnership with a local middle or high school. The curriculum could include interactive modules on skin anatomy, sun safety behaviors, myth-busting around sunscreen and skin tone, and digital media literacy (e.g., evaluating skincare trends on TikTok or YouTube). One module could even feature clips from Emily’s podcast to enhance peer relatability (your advisory board or the IRB committee may require the module to be validated by Subject Matter Experts prior to approval).

Outcomes to Measure:

• Pre- and post-intervention knowledge of UV risks

• Self-reported behavior change (e.g., increased sunscreen use)

• Willingness to share sun safety messages with peers

• Feasibility and acceptability of nurse-led content delivery

Setting: School-based health clinics or community health centers with youth outreach programs.

Stakeholders: School administrators, school nurses, dermatology NPs, parents, and youth peer educators.

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PhD Nurse Research Pathway: Exploring Adolescent Health Narratives in Dermatology Education

For PhD-prepared nurse researchers, Emily’s work presents an opportunity to explore the role of youth-created media in shaping peer health behaviors. A qualitative or mixed-methods study could investigate:

• How adolescents interpret and respond to peer-generated content on topics like sun safety, acne, and skin tone-related stigma

• Cultural perceptions of skin health in racially diverse adolescents, especially in relation to sun protection myths and beauty ideals

• The impact of youth-led digital health advocacy (e.g., podcasts, YouTube, TikTok) on public health literacy and behavior change

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A long-term research agenda could examine how early exposure to preventive skin health messaging affects sunscreen adherence, dermatologic health-seeking behaviors, and health outcomes in adulthood. Grounding this work in intersectionality theory, youth participatory action research (YPAR), and implementation science would offer rich contributions to nursing knowledge and adolescent dermatology.

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A Call to Action

Emily’s podcast is a gift to the adolescent health community, and it’s our responsibility to amplify it. Here are a few ways to get involved:

• Share SunSun: The Podcast with your students, patients, or children

• Use her content to inspire peer education projects or teen-led health clubs

• Reflect on your creative projects, and ask what’s stopping you from sharing them

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You can listen to the podcast and access new episodes here.

If you find her message valuable, please take a moment to follow and leave a five-star review. In the world of adolescent public health, this kind of visibility matters.

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Kimberly Madison, DNP, AGPCNP-BC, WCC

I am a Board-Certified Nurse Practitioner, educator, and author dedicated to advancing dermatology nursing education and research with an emphasis on skin of color. As the founder of Mahogany Dermatology Nursing | Education | Research, I aim to expand access to dermatology research, business acumen, and innovation using artificial intelligence and augmented reality while also leading professional groups and mentoring clinicians. Through engaging and informative social media content and peer-reviewed research, I empower nurses and healthcare professionals to excel in dermatology and improve patient care.

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