May 2024
Cynthia
Lester
,
RN
Western Region
Virginia Department of Corrections
Western Virginia
,
VA
United States

 

 

 

She provided many hours of support during the off hours, leading and guiding this facility through staffing challenges to support and advocate for patient care.
The nurse is a regional leader in the western area of Virginia. There was a gap in supervision at the Sussex facility in the eastern region, and she was assigned to this facility as well temporarily for six months. Even though this facility was 7 hours away in travel, Ms. Lester successfully managed this facility, which, at the time, did not have a nurse leader on site. She provided many hours of support during the off hours, leading and guiding this facility through staffing challenges to support and advocate for patient care. She worked tirelessly with Operations, the warden, and the medical team to sustain and improve this facility. When she had an opportunity to hand this facility to another regional leader, she decided to keep the facility for an additional 6 weeks and get the nurse leader at the facility onboarded and ready. This shows a true commitment to our staff and our patients.