Elizabeth Birdwell, MSN, RN, PMH-BC

Prior to receiving my Masters in Nursing, my personal and professional goal is to use what I learned to educate, motivate, and manage effectively and efficiently with kindness and integrity in a Leadership Role.

• In the role of the CQTA, I am responsible for managing approximately 60 practices, both small PCP offices and large corporate entities. I, alone, presented to these practices with their quality performance data, educating these practices on how to utilize their and VHAN's resources to meet all the quality measures set forth by the insurance payers contracted with the VHAN network by sharing best practices and supporting them to achieve the Network's goal.
• Furthermore, as the practice-facing advisor, my responsibilities include; scheduling the meetings, performing data analysis, leading the presentations quarterly (monthly for the corporate entity of West TN Healthcare) meetings, and collaborating with these practices in creating action plans to improve the areas of opportunity for improvement to ensure their success.
• It is through my dedication and tenacity not only to provide encouragement but also to facilitate the practices' initiatives in providing quality care for the patients collaboratively virtually and in-person (on-site).
• I am a self-motivated leader working remotely, but also a team player by collaborating with my colleagues on quality team projects as well as attending and presenting the engagement, progress, and barriers of my practices, strategizing to improve and share best practices, learning about new initiatives with the VHAN Network Operations Team and other departments under the VHAN umbrella at VUMC.
• My position is multi-faceted and rewarding as rapport is often achieved and the practices become an extension of my work family.
• Proficiently using technology and various platforms such as Tableau, SharePoint, TEAMs, and all Microsoft apps (Excel, PowerPoint, etc) is essential to not only discuss strategies but to be visually informative virtually.

• I have been an RN since 2005; at VUMC since 2010
• I have been a psychiatric nurse caring for this acute patient population with 8 years at Vanderbilt Psychiatric Hospital as a charge nurse in the inpatient setting for 5 years and as the lead nurse for the psychiatric emergency room department (Psychiatric Assessment Services- PAS) for about 3 years while precepting new nurses, nursing students, and assisting resident MDs for all 8 years, a Neurology charge nurse for two clinics (TVC and PRB), a Float Pool nurse; working in GI, Endocrinology, Allergy/ENT, and Primary Care while leading the unit board for the Float Pool.
• My last position as a primary care nurse for the Float Pool became permanent and was were I was able to shine by achieving an RN 3 status and as a Charge Nurse (3+ years).
• Utilizing my diverse nursing experience and knowledge, I was able to be a proficient lead nurse for two providers and their attributed patients at VMG- Green Hills.
• More than rewarding was relationship-building with these patients as if they were my family by using the resources I obtained over the many years at VUMC working in various fields to my advantage to provide exceptional care for these patients.
• Championed for best practices in quality as a PCMH champion and championed our first annual recognition for Magnet accreditation in the ambulatory area of the hospital, VUMC.
• Volunteering as one of the charge nurses when we ran into a situation where we had not only lost our assistant nurse manager but our nurse manager, as well. This endeavor was accomplished by working in tandem with 3 other RNs (under the interim managers, Katie Brennan and Kim Lippard) to ensure that the primary care practice stay afloat while replacements were recruited. My role in leading my colleagues and working with the providers, as well, as a united team effort through this turbulent time while maintaining my role as the lead nurse for my providers, providing the personal attention needed from my patients, and balancing my work schedule with completing my Masters degree.
• Successfully utilized critical thinking skills triaging and prioritizing patient acuity levels and individual needs in person in the clinic and virtually on the patient portal with a high volume of completion rate.
• Provided education during nursing visits in the treatment of Hypertension, Diabetes, and medication management.
• Enhanced patient satisfaction by providing compassionate, holistic nursing care that addressed both physical and emotional needs of my patients to which I was awarded with a Daisy nomination, Positive Feedback from Green Cards, Exceptional Jo accolades, and Nurse of the Month.
• Assisted in the training and mentorship of new nursing staff members and colleagues, contributing to a positive work environment and delivering high-quality patient care.
• Improved patient outcomes by implementing evidence-based nursing interventions and individualized care as a PCMH and Magnet Champion.
• Promoted a culture of safety within the healthcare facility by participating in quality improvement initiatives by leading and encouraging colleagues to adopt new best practices and initiatives; securing annual preventative visits, performing accurate blood pressure measurements, ensuring healthy hand hygiene as an observer, certifying that colleagues maintain blood glucose competency annually, and overseeing medication bar code scanning performance and education.
• Participated in ongoing professional development opportunities by attending nursing webinars, achieving RN3 status, obtaining my masters degree in leadership and management to stay current on best practices in nursing care and emerging trends in healthcare delivery.
• Participating in interviews and the onboarding process of new nurses.

• As I transitioned from being a NICU nurse, I found myself gravitating to being an advocate for Mental Health
• During my time at Blount Memorial's Emotional Health and Recovery Center, I detoxed patients, led counseling groups, and stabilized patients with mood instability.
• Using a collaborative approach, with the MD, SW, myself (often as the charge nurse), and the patient to create a patient centered/individualized care plan to ensure their safety and provide the quality care that they needed
• Conducted thorough patient assessments to identify changes in condition, promptly notifying physicians and initiating appropriate interventions when necessary.
• Utilized critical thinking skills to prioritize nursing interventions based on patients' acuity levels and individual needs.
• Administered medications safely according to established guidelines while closely monitoring for side effects or adverse reactions requiring intervention during the detoxing process,
• Assisted in the training and mentorship of new nursing staff members, contributing to a positive work environment and high-quality patient care.
• Facilitated therapeutic communication, conflict resolution and crisis intervention by redirecting negative behaviors and helping patients regain or improve coping abilities.
• Performed patient assessments to monitor expected response to medications and altering treatment plans.
• Triaging incoming patients and determined severity of mental illnesses in the ER prior to inpatient admission.
• Communicated with healthcare team members to plan, implement and enhance treatment strategies.
• Monitored patient reactions after administering medications.
• Performed frequent checks on patients with active suicidal thoughts.
• Quickly responded to situations impacting safety and security to unit, actualizing crisis prevention interventions to control and de-escalate situations.
• Provided patient education with detox protocols, medications, and coping skills.

• Right after I graduated as an RN, I worked as a NICU RN taking care of preemies and supporting their parents
• I learned from the best providers how to provide the best care for the smallest and critical patients on earth
• It was an experience of a lifetime
• Through communication, active listening, and implementing specialized critical care for this unique and acute patients, I learned to be mindful of everything that I did and was taught to do.