A role model is someone others strive to be like. Jennifer is the ultimate role model of the professional nurse. She goes above and beyond on a daily basis for not only her patients but her colleagues. She is an excellent mentor to younger nurses and ensures all are taught the correct way to administer care. She is everyone's "go to" person when there is a challenging issue. Anytime an issue arises, Jennifer remains calm and professional. She collects the details and then makes a decision on how to proceed.
Jennifer is the chair of a shared governance committee within her organization. She was elected to the board of the Dallas chapter of the Oncology Nursing Society (ONS). She precepts all new employees and students. Her coworkers state "We all strive to be as good as Jennifer is". Due to her expertise, Jennifer was chosen to attend a national leadership weekend sponsored by ONS. Upon her return, she shared her excitement and new leadership wisdom with all of her colleagues. This nurse has taken the primary leadership role in Fast Track area, this is the first place a patient encounters a nurse for initial assessment. She has excelled in this area by reducing wait times through increased efficiency by proactively contacting the clinics, chemo department, social workers, physicians, and schedulers. She owns any problems that the patient encounters and constantly follows through.
Jennifer is always the first in line to volunteer for community outreach programs. She currently has volunteered to be part of a nursing research study on, "The Impact of Nurse Mentorship on Oncology Nurse Speaker Anxiety". Jennifer helps to keep people connected by organizing the social media page for the local ONS chapter. She also is the Dallas chapter nominating chair. She volunteered to be a bleacher monitor for the annual Christmas parade.
Every patient who Jennifer encounters she treats like family. She is there to laugh with or offers a shoulder for them to cry on. She consistently goes above and beyond for her patients ensuring all their needs are met before they leave her care. One patient's statement, "Thank you for caring so much for me. You are gentle, professional, thoughtful, and loving. I am so lucky to have you as my nurse".
Jennifer has submitted multiple abstracts to ONS Congress and was selected to present on patient education tool for a home infusion CADD pump she developed. This teaching tool helps patients cope with any difficulty that may arise with their chemotherapy pump. This tool ensured that patients were educated prior to leaving her care and safely received their medication while at home. Annually she successfully completes the highest level of her organization's clinical ladder. She mentors and fosters professional growth of her colleagues by being an active member of the clinical ladder committee. She has served as past Unit Base Council chair and co-chair.