Heather Alter
Albuquerque,NM
Summary
I am utterly committed to quality and patient-centered care. Collaboration and attention to detail are key foundations of my mission. I strive to build trust and rapport with my patients, which positively affects health outcomes and patient satisfaction. I am committed to rigorous professional development, as demonstrated by my continuing education, affiliations, and certifications in my field. I am a quick learner who adapts easily to new situations and challenges.
Pursuing a full-time role that presents professional challenges and leverages interpersonal skills, effective time management, and problem-solving expertise.
Overview
24
24
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
Reskin Medical
02.2024 - Current
- I provide quality home care for patients with chronic wounds. They are home-bound due to immobility. I assess, diagnose, and come up with an individual plan of care to get them healed as soon as possible.
- I order, interpret, and act upon diagnostic tests for the facilitation of wound healing.
- As a medical provider, I remain in constant communication with the entire healthcare team. Primary care providers, home health and hospice agencies, vascular specialists, and Hospital Based Wound clinics are invaluable partners in addressing and healing these chronic & complex wounds.
- I use the latest technology and procedures available. I provide the highest quality care possible with the best products available. I provide the best possible treatments and provide the most appropriate treatments that the patient qualifies for. I use amnion derived products for grafting, the latest infrared tools for ensuring adequate bloody supply, molecular testing for infection as frequency as necessary, debridement, and more. As a ReSkin Medical provider, I am treating patients with even the most chronic & complex wounds, healing them in an average time of 55 days.
University of New Mexico School of Nursing
01.2024 - Current
- I teach all levels of the nursing practice on the subject of Dermatology and wounds. It is a 400-level class. My duties include but are not limited to;
- Facilitate learning for nurses at all levels using multiple methods
- Monitor, evaluate, and assess courses, nursing programs, and students
- Motivate students and staff
- Serve as mentors and role models
- Integrate theory and practice
- Research and report on the latest evidence-based best practices
Christus St. Vincent Hyperbaric Wound Center
12.2020 - 02.2024
- Providing high-quality patient care for patients with a variety of complex wound types by completing focused wound assessments, identifying factors that impede wound healing, thorough documentation, and utilizing knowledge of the wound healing process and various modalities of treatment. My emphasis is on health promotion, disease prevention, chronic disease management, and health education. I facilitate telemedicine to accommodate patient needs.
- Cross-trained in hyperbaric oxygen therapy. Responsible for safely diving patients with multiple co-morbidities. I take immediate action to handle any problems with the dive.
- Assess and treat wounds making key decisions on dressing products/changes including negative pressure wound therapy, lower extremity multilayer, and Unna boot compression therapies and HBOT.
- Serve as lead on the Save Your Toes program. This program provides quality foot care for the overall health of my patients. Use the Dremel tool to treat nail diseases and to prevent amputations.
- Perform bedside debridement, tissue biopsies, tissue skin grafting, and tissue/wound cultures.
- Interpret TCOM, CT, MRI, and vascular studies.
Presbyterian Urgent Care Family Nurse Practitioner
11.2018 - 10.2022
- Work telemedicine video visits for Presbyterian Urgent Care and clinical settings
- Experienced in providing clinical care to patients
- Thorough knowledge of medical office procedures
- Knowledge of state and federal regulations
- Ability to provide assistance to patients and community members
- Ability to determine effective relationships with employees and patients
- Performed independent and confident examinations with appropriate diagnoses according to physical findings and pertinent patient data
- Utilized referral processes in appropriate circumstances, ordered baseline, recommended testing per protocols and evidence-based practice guidelines before triaging into a specialty area
- Acquired refined awareness and expertise in recognition of complex signs and symptoms
- Provided therapeutic oversight to approximately 25–35 patients per shift
- Promoted holistic wellness philosophy by encouraging self-care and prevention of illness through patient education and counseling.
- Provided direct medical care, consultation, coordination, and referrals for a diverse multigenerational patient population with a wide range of clinical issues.
- Diagnosed and managed a variety of illnesses including chronic and mental health conditions
- Ensured compliance with age-appropriate preventive health measures
- Provided women's health care, including pelvic and breast exams, family planning
- Ordinated care with local hospitals and EMS to transfer patients to a higher level of care when necessary
- Performed in-office procedures such as starting IV fluids, incision and drainage, wound repair, and splinting fractures
- My role in Urgent Care Unit was to provide mentorship to my collogues on the up-to-date care of wounds and give suggestions on how to help them make closure decisions. I served as their wound liaison.
- With the experience of Presbyterian Urgent Care and 17 years at UNMH, I have specialized in wound care, emergency room procedures and processes, medical/cardiac ICU care, trauma ICU and neuroscience ICU care for the majority of my career. I have extensive clinical experience as a practitioner.
University of New Mexico Hospital Burn Wound Ostomy Team, Registered Nurse
06.2011 - 11.2018
- Developed then Skin Champion Program to decrease the prevalence and incidence of pressure ulcers, thus decreasing wound cost to UNMH
- Assisted with creation, editing, and enforcing policy and procedures for wound care nursing
- Identified, analyzed, and proposed policies, processes, and or other strategies, especially those related to the new Skin Champion Program that allowed UNMH to meet standards of care and achieve Magnet status
- Assisted with the development of nurse-initiated protocols in wound care to better support floor nursing and ensure compliance and implementation
- Assumed all educational events for staff (including medical doctors) during weekly Grand Rounds in the Department of Surgery
- Developed an educational program for all new employees concentrating in wound care (the no way/know how program)
- Provided full-time patient care on the wound care team
- Provided inpatient and outpatient care, including surface support knowledge to help in the prevention of pressure injuries
- Served the neonate through Geriatric patient population
- Advanced knowledge of wound care expertise
- Assisted medical doctors with crucial wound care decisions in life-or-death situations in all clinical settings, including the operating room
- Gained extensive knowledge in operating room procedures
- Served as clinical instructor in wound care to MDs, RNs, students, and multidisciplinary technicians
- Standardized the electronic medical records for charting wounds
- Assisted with monitoring and reporting of specialty items used by the wound care team to analyze and reduce cost
- Coordinated care with all disciplinary teams
- Assisted with recruiting, interviewing, orienting, and training new staff
- Relief charge
- Gained advanced knowledge of critically ill patients
- Daisy Award Winner March 2015 for EMR standardization in wounds
UNMH Critical Care Float Pool, Registered Nurse
03.2010 - 06.2011
- Main focus was in all ICUs (medical cardiac, neuroscience and trauma), ER, and interventional radiology
- Used critical thinking and multitasking, served as a team-oriented nurse with a positive/professional attitude
- Advanced knowledge of equipment in all the units of the hospital
- Assumed all duties of a critical care registered nurse
- Served as Wound Care Team/PICC Team-UNMH-Registered Nurse
Emergency Room Trauma Nurse UNMH
01.2002 - 02.2007
- Worked as a registered nurse in all areas of the emergency room, performing all tasks and using all specialty equipment
- Relief charge
- Critical thinking and advanced assessment skills-Trauma Certified
Education
Family Nurse Practitioner Board Certified -
Walden University
01.2018
Bachelor of Science in Nursing -
Grand Canyon University
01-2015
Associates of Nursing - undefined
Technical Vocational Institute
01.2001
Skills
- Flexible and adaptable
- Attention to detail
- Time management
- Problem-solving
- Customer service
- Teamwork and collaboration
- Friendly, positive attitude
- Dependable and responsible
- Multitasking
- Excellent communication
- Critical thinking
- Computer skills
- Calm under pressure
- Organizational skills
- Active listening
- Organization and time management
- Decision-making
- Problem resolution
- Verbal communication
Certification
- 2014–2020: Foot and Nail Care Specialist, Board Certified UNMH
- 2005-2010 WON, Emory
- 2010–2015: Certified Wound Specialists, Wound Care Education Institute
- 2007–2020: Certification in Wound Debridement-American Board of Wound Management
- 2007–2017: Certified Wound Vac Therapy, KCI Wound Management
- 2003–2007: Certified Emergency Nurse (CEN)
Special Interests
- Presented to legislation the need for the protection of healthcare workers and making it a felony to assault medical care personnel 2006. I am currently lobbying at the roundhouse for better state laws concerning medical care and coverage
- Emergency Nurse Excellence Award winner 2006
- President of shared governance-UNMH 2002–2018
- Assisted with the retention of staff through shared governance
- Assisted in the analysis of narcotic charting and ensuring discrepancies were recognized, which helped with the development of a program to ensure counts were current and correct
- Produced nurse-initiated protocols for triage to ensure promptness of test results in the ED setting
Timeline
Reskin Medical
02.2024 - Current
University of New Mexico School of Nursing
01.2024 - Current
Christus St. Vincent Hyperbaric Wound Center
12.2020 - 02.2024
Presbyterian Urgent Care Family Nurse Practitioner
11.2018 - 10.2022
University of New Mexico Hospital Burn Wound Ostomy Team, Registered Nurse
06.2011 - 11.2018
UNMH Critical Care Float Pool, Registered Nurse
03.2010 - 06.2011
Emergency Room Trauma Nurse UNMH
01.2002 - 02.2007
Associates of Nursing - undefined
Technical Vocational Institute
Family Nurse Practitioner Board Certified -
Walden University
Bachelor of Science in Nursing -
Grand Canyon University