Hometown: Statesville, NC
Name of Undergraduate Institution: NC A&T State University
Major(s)/Minor(s) in College: Nursing Major
Name of Graduate School: NC A&T State University and Walden University
Where are you currently at in your career path and why did you decide to pursue this career path?
I have been a Nurse for 19 years and am in the middle of my career path. I have always wanted to be a Nurse because of the job stability and job satisfaction.
If you could go back and have a chat with your 1st year post-graduate self, what would you tell her?
To be better prepared with my time management skills when it comes to doing papers.
What advice would you give to a professional student looking to pursue a similar path as yours?
I would strongly encourage a MSN – it opens the doors to so many other job opportunities.
What is a major challenge you have had to overcome and how did you do so?
Being passed over for a job that had stated that they preferably wanted a MSN nurse. Even though I was one of the very few nurses with an MSN, another BSN ended up getting the position. I just prayed that God would put me in a position that I could utilize my MSN, which he did 6 months later.
What is your favorite thing about your job?
The flexibility and the process improvement recommendations that I give in order to improve HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems) and readmissions at Wake Forest Baptist Health.
Can you please walk us through a typical workday?
- Review patient census.
- Round with Interdisciplinary Team from 9:45am to 11am.
- Educate patients on CHF, DM, and other co-morbidity diseases that may cause a readmission.
- Call patients for post-discharge calls.
- Home visits after 1pm.
What do you feel is the most challenging part of your job? The easiest part?
- Challenge – Nurse and Provider “buy-in” on preventing readmissions
- Easiest Part – Calling patients and being thanked for care well given while they were inpatient
What has been your favorite memory so far in your career?
My current job satisfaction – knowing that others see your worth and input in giving great patient satisfaction and preventing re-admissions.
Thank you for taking the time to share a bit about yourself with us April! Your perspective of healthcare is hugely important and you are very much appreciated by the readers, your team and all of the patients that you help care for!
Health Career Spotlights Home Page
Posted on March 26th, 2018
This is a such a great article about my childhood bestfriend. She is such a hard worker and stays dedicated to her her career goals. I’m so very proud of April. Keep striving for the best!!