CAREERS IN NURSING
BITTER SWEET: COMING AND GOING
by Vickie Jenkins – Writer/Photographer
Bellevue Health and Rehabilitation offers individual programs that are designed, supervised and executed by a team of specialists. Our team includes physicians, nurses, therapists, nutritional consultants and mental health professionals. -Bellevue Health and Rehabilitation-
Meet Ashley Quintana Harrison, LPN, Unit Manager at Bellevue Health and Rehabilitation. Ashley is in charge of thirty-two patients and forty to fifty nurses. “There are quite a few responsibilities that I have as the unit manager but I love my job,” Ashley commented.
“This is a wonderful place to work. Bellevue is a family company with sixty years of experience. The family is on site seven days a week. There are not too many places that can say that,” Ashley said. “I like working in rehab because I get to see the patients get back to a prior level of function. I also help the family members who are dealing with the recent decline of their loved one, helping them understand what has happened to their family member.”
What is your favorite part of your job? “I would say it is when we see the patients go home,” she said with a laugh. “Oh, that came out wrong, I mean when they have completed their therapy and are able to go back to their original living environment because that means that we succeeded in what we were doing; getting the patients medically stable to go home. It is also bitter sweet because we hate to see our patients leave. I like being that person that can be there and help them with their family needs no matter what, whether they are coming or going.”
Ashley has quite a few family members in the medical field. Her mother is a nurse, one of her sisters is a CNA and the other sister is in RN school. “We don’t have to worry when someone gets sick, “she said.
Ashley grew up in Bishop, California, a small country town, about four hours north of Los Angeles. She moved to Oklahoma about ten years ago. (When her mother went to nursing school) When I was little, I wanted to be a lawyer because I was always arguing,” she said with a laugh. “Somehow, I changed my mind and ended up going to school for nursing at Platt College. Ashley has been a nurse for nine years and has been at Bellevue for almost three years. “Because I work in rehab, I feel like I can still be the voice of the people here. I get to advocate and argue for my patients. It’s kind of like having the best of both worlds.”
Asking Ashley to describe herself, she said, “I am definitely an outgoing, straight-to-the-point kind of person. When I set out to do something, I get it done. I am a doer, take charge and caring person. I am very compassionate. I guess you could take all of those things that I mentioned and roll them into one and that would be ME.”
What do you contribute most to others while you are at work? “I think it has to be my stability. I am always here on time and I think that is important for everyone. “I also follow through with my plans. I make sure I don’t let the ball drop! I think one of the most important things is to like your job,” she added.
Family and patients motivate Ashley to work hard and do her best in everything she sets out to do. “I try to stay positive and happy so I can spread it to others. I enjoy talking to all of the patients and I feel like I am a big help to them,” Ashley said.
What qualities make a good nurse? “I think a nurse needs to be compassionate and dependable. In my opinion, they should be thick-skinned because more than likely, they will run into some rough times. Just when they think they can’t go any farther, their compassion will take over and that is when they will receive the biggest reward from just being a nurse,” Ashley explained.
Ashley is married to her wonderful husband Alvin. They have one little boy, Kingston who is six years old. Their four-legged family member is their German Shepard, Roscoe. Ashley’s hobbies include reading, cooking and riding her pink motorcycle. Ashley has been riding for about two years now and loves riding with Alvin.
Asking Ashley what one word would describe her life and she replied, FULFILLING.”
