JOAN SWIRSKY, the recipient of seven Long Island Press Awards, wrote health, science and feature articles for The New York Times Long Island section for over 20 years, as well as for numerous regional and national publications. A former obstetrical nurse and Lamaze teacher, she is a practicing psychotherapist. In addition, she is the book and lyric writer of four musicals, one of which, "Oh Baby!" - about three couples facing parenthood - was produced in New York City in 1983.

For eight years, starting in 1985, Joan was a science writer for The Women's Record on Long Island, during which time she wrote over 175 articles on the issue of breast cancer on Long Island - its clinical, psychological, political, environmental, and social implications. She has been publicly acknowledged as being responsible for two redesigns of the New York State Study on breast cancer and as being the first journalist in America to put the breast cancer-environment relationship "on the map" of public consciousness.

Joan is a clinical nurse specialist (R.N., M.S., CS, CE) and certified psychotherapist. She was awarded a Nurse of Distinction Award by the New York State Legislature in 1991, received the Master's Faculty Leadership Award from Adelphi University, and is a member of Sigma Theta Tau Nursing Honor Society. She was also the co-founder and Editor-in-Chief of REVOLUTION - The Journal of Nurse Empowerment from 1990 to 1995. The magazine, a national quarterly, received First Prize for Editorial Excellence from the prestigious national media Folio Awards in 1994. In addition, for 15 years, she was the editor of The Caucus Current, a monthly magazine on Jewish political issues.

For the past several years, she has written a monthly column on pregnancy and childbirth for Newday’s Parents & Children magazine, and for Newsmax Magazine, as well as columns on political commentary for several Internet news journals. Click here for her articles.

Joan and her husband Steve, a businessman, have three children and three grandchildren.