Knowing you might have the same reservations about my background, I want to put your mind at rest and share my background. I am confident you will find me competent to share caregiver information as you hear about my nursing/healthcare training and caregiving experience.
Education/Training
My interest in healthcare started as a child. I knew at a young age that I wanted to be a nurse. Immediately upon graduating from high school, I entered a diploma nursing school in Roanoke, Virginia. After graduating with honors in 1978, I pursued my Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the Medical College of Virginia in Richmond. While obtaining my bachelor’s degree, I worked for a private hospital, Metropolitan Hospital, when I did not have classes.
Experience – Nursing
I enjoyed all areas of nursing, so working in the float pool while going to school was an excellent opportunity for me to gain experience in multiple areas of nursing. After graduation, I decided to remain with Metropolitan and chose to work on their orthopedic floor.
Not long after starting that job, the day clinician asked me to apply for the evening clinician position. After asking me to apply, the evening nurse called me to ask if I would take the job and if I could start immediately.
God, in his infinite wisdom, placed me in the right place at the right time, allowing me to gain experience in wound and colostomy care, exposure to psychiatry, intensive care, emergency room, recovery room, chemical dependency, infection control, and employee health nursing, as well as additional training in complex care for medical and surgical nursing cases. I had the opportunity to learn things I would never have been able to see if on one unit only.
Experience – Non-Nursing
Since I worked the evening shift, the ancillary departments were either closed or minimally staffed, which meant if their services were needed, the evening supervisors or I had to lend them a hand. Often, I was the one to help because the nursing supervisors needed to remain free to problem-solve other issues.
As a result, I gained experience in materials management, assisting with therapeutic testing (helping hold patients), cooking in dietary, obtaining medications from the pharmacy, and delivering bodies to the morgue. The experience helped me better explain to patients about procedures and what to expect if they had to venture into those areas.
Left Nursing Role
The more familiar I became with other areas, the more people came to me for help with issues occurring in their work areas. I began training staff on conflict resolution and other leadership skills. Managers started coming to me for help with staff issues. The CEO noticed what was happening, and when the HR leader left the organization, the CEO asked me to take his place. I declined due to lack of training, but he insisted he would provide me with whatever I needed. And he did.
With my nursing background in HR, I assisted the organization with preparing regulatory standards, including training and policy development. I became very familiar with healthcare laws, standards, and regulations through that process. With each role I acquired throughout my life, I gained more knowledge and skills about healthcare that prepared me to help care for my family members as they needed, especially my husband. God saw to it that I had it or had access to the training needed just when I needed it.
God gave me a solid foundation on which to stand as I became a caregiver role. Because I had such a great background, taking on the role was much easier than for many of you who still need medical experience or background training. I don’t see how some of you manage to take on as much as you do. My concern for how much you don’t know that you need to know is why I created this website. I want to give you access to what you need to know without cost or obligation to return it. I hope it will help ease your burden.
