Registered Nurse

Registered nurses employed in primary care work hard to meet the challenges of a diverse and aging patient population.

 

People want to be treated as fast as possible by the most skilled and efficient providers available; and they deserve no less than that. Quality healthcare requires the collaboration of multidisciplinary teams in order to achieve health in both mind and body.  

 

Our population is living longer and, therefore, the incidence of complicated chronic diseases such as Diabetes, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) are on the rise.  Unfortunately this places additional time constraints on our physicians and nurse practitioners. There is continuous pressure on primary care providers to provide care for those conditions and to help keep patients healthy in their homes and out of the hospital and emergency departments. We work as an interdisciplinary team with our family physicians and other allied health providers to provide our patients with comprehensive and collaborative health care.

 

Our physicians rely heavily on our expertise and refer their patients freely to us for services that we are better positioned to provide. 

 

Our Registered Nurses provide the following services:

 

  • Immunization shots, including flu shot clinics and preparation of immunization records;
  • Allergy injections, B12 injections, some intramuscular, subcutaneous and intravenous medication administration;
  • Ear flushing and hearing screening assessments;
  • Wart and corn treatments, suture/staple removal and dressing/packing changes;
  • ECGs, Glucometer instruction for diabetic patients;
  • Spirometry testing for our COPD patients or patients with suspected Asthma;
  • Smoking cessation therapy appointments with free nicotine replacement therapy;
  • Hypertension Program which includes referral to our Hypertension Class, periodic BP monitoring including the use of the 24 hour blood pressure monitoring equipment;
  • Repeat pap tests;
  • Discharge follow up phone calls after a hospitalization;
  • Travel consultations;
  • Assisting our physicians with medical procedures such as lesion removals, trigger point injections and IUD insertions;
  • “Stand Up” falls prevention program;
  • Autoclave and medical instrument sterilization and maintenance;
  • Hospital discharge follow up and homecare coordination with the CCAC;
  • Well baby assessments;
  • Phlebotomy;
  • Follow-up phone calls to patients for physicians; and,
  • Breastfeeding assessments and follow-up.

 

Primary Care nursing is very rewarding because we are often involved in the ups-and-downs of our patients’ lives. In some instances, we are there to provide care during their pregnancies and child-rearing stages right through until they become older adults.  In many cases, we provide care for multiple generations within one family and all at the same time. It is our pleasure to offer these services and a privilege to play an active role in helping to keep patients and their family members healthy, active and enjoying what life has to offer.