During the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2020 celebration of the Year of the Nurse, .
Her reflections on the experience of a family nurse practitioner (FNP) with a focus on inpatient palliative care delivery during COVID-19 paint a moving portrait of nurses working through a historic event.
Galeski is a faculty member and Doctor of Nursing Practice student at the Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing at °Ç¸çºÚÁÏ.
In celebration of National Nurse Practitioner Week 2021, she shared her thoughts on what being a nurse practitioner means to her and how the role influences the nursing profession and care delivery.
What inspired you to become a nurse practitioner?
Of all the providers I worked with in the hospitals, the Certified Nurse Midwives (CNMs) and Nurse Practitioners (NPs) were the most caring and approachable of all, bridging the gap between healing a person and treating a disease. My colleague faculty members at °Ç¸çºÚÁÏ were always willing to reach out and help the next in line, lifting up the profession one individual at a time.
Where is the best place to spend a day in Cleveland?
Visiting the beautiful museums and parks at University Circle.
What does being a nurse practitioner mean to you?
As a Certified Nurse Practitioner (CNP), I can utilize my nursing and medical knowledge with compassion and autonomy to identify mutual goals of care with my patients. Together, we can find a path to their best state of health. In my current work as palliative NP, this might mean to find ways to reduce suffering, but often it also means to enable/coach my patients to navigate medical, ethical and legal options in order to live life to the fullest.
What is the best advice you ever received?
Don't apply to a job you don't want. No benefits are worth it if your heart is not in it.
What is your favorite thing about °Ç¸çºÚÁÏ?
I love being at FPB because all fields of nursing are appreciated, celebrated and promoted. Beyond FPB, the CWRU faculty community has been welcoming, engaged and dedicated- anyone interested in making a difference can truly do so!