Echo Heron

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A pioneer author in the true medicine genre,
ECHO HERON'S first book, INTENSIVE CARE; THE STORY OF A NURSE became a New York Times bestseller overnight. In this exciting autobiographical account, INTENSIVE CARE brings the reader behind the closed doors of critical care units for an up close and very personal look at the thousands of compelling life and death stories that take place in the critical care units of a busy urban hospital.

ECHO HERON

GREETINGS AND WELCOME

Here's the off-the-cuff version of the Echo Heron Story:

I was born in the USA along with a record number of other boomers. My given name, Echo Ruah Anne Elizabeth Philomena Salato, is the result of The Great Name War which took place between my British/Dutch mother and Italian father. 'Ruah' was to honor the Mohawk woman reportedly thrown into the lineage mix along the way.
In 1967 I migrated to San Francisco where I worked as a legal secretary and traveled in some unique social and political circles. Jerry Garcia, the Hallinans, the Black Panthers, Margo St. James, Michael Stepanian - it was an education in diversity to say the least. A day in the life might have included a chat with Benny Bufano over morning coffee, evacuate the office because of a bomb scare in the afternoon, attend a dinner with Mayors Alioto and Lindsey at Melvin Belli's apartment, head over to City Lights to hear Ferlinghetti read, then top off the night at Filmore West listening to Janice Joplin wail.
In 1975 I returned to college for my RN. For the next 18 years I worked in the emergency room and coronary care units of a trauma base hospital living out the experiences I would eventually include in INTENSIVE CARE and CONDITION CRITICAL.
In 1983 Reader's Digest printed a story of mine, (click on the INTENSIVE CARE; THE STORY OF A NURSE link to the left)and in 1985, Antheneum contracted with me to write an autobiographical account of my life as a critical care nurse. In 1987, INTENSIVE CARE; THE STORY OF A NURSE was published, and in 1988 it went on the New York Times bestseller list for two months.
I soon gained a reputation in the popular media for having a straight-from-the-hip manner of delivering information about the politics of the American healthcare industry. Being passionate about my subject was the only way I was able to overcome my stage fright. Trust me on this: odd transformations take place in a normally shy person when facing a CNN camera lens or Oprah in the flesh.
As an activist for patient and nurses' rights, I lecture on patient rights, healthcare advocates, and nurses'rights
In 1992, I quit my senior RN position in CCU and ER and moved to Montserrat, West Indies where I lived with my cat, Mooshie. Truth be told, my cat and I were so inseparable, people came to view us as a mixed-species couple rather than owner and pet.
After battling hurricanes, giant poisonous frogs, racial discrimination, and iguana the size of washing machines, Mooshie and I left the West Indies to travel the US and Europe, trying places on for size. We lived in New York, San Francisco, Hollywood, Chicago, Los Angeles, Ojai, Orange County, and the Gulf Coast of Florida. For the last few years I've lived in Alan Watts's old house in a National Park in Northern California where I continue to write.
I am currently cat-less, although I keep track of local cougar and bobcat for the Park Service on a volunteer basis.
For further personal information, please refer to my FAQS page or read my books.
If you have any questions or comments, please don't hesitate to email me at Heronwrite@gmail.com. Also, if you know me, and you think I've left out any pertinent information about my life...like my years of service in the Lithuanian Army, please email. Thanks - Echo.