Healthlinks Upstate Nov/Dec 2018

48 | www.UpstatePhysiciansSC.com | www.HealthLinksUpstate.com TRANAKA FUQUA, MBA, BSN, RN Tranaka Fuqua’s journey to nursing was in- spired by the passing of her husband in 2007 from a tumor on his brain stem. He was only 26 at the time. She found herself in a whirlwind of hospital visits and doctor’s appointments in her mid-20s, and she soon realized that without the support of the oncology nurses, the process would have been impossible to bare. “The nurses unapologetically became a part of our family and stood for us both when we no longer had the strength to stand on our own,” she said. She was working in the corporate world when her first husband passed, but, soon after, decided to pursue a nursing career. She took classes at Greenville Technical College and went on to complete the nursing program at USC Upstate. She accepted her first nursing position on the adult oncolo- gy inpatient unit with the Greenville Health System. She is now working as a clinical research coordinator and is a principle in- vestigator for the Greenville Health System, where she is studying the prev- alence of stress and fatigue among oncology nurses. “Nurses sincerely care for the patients and their families and become a part of the patients’ support system throughout their journey, and it is im- portant to understand this occurrence and work together to offer nurses effective self-care strategies to promote resilience and reduce burnout,” she said. “Choosing to be a nurse meant intentionally accepting a lifelong chal- lenge to learn, apply and commit to a cause that only hope, faith and pas- sion fuels. Nurses must continually be inspired by their work – on purpose, for purpose,” she concluded. CRISTY BALLARD, BSN, RN, CEN Cristy Ballard was interested in the medical field in her early 20s when she was trying to fig- ure out what she wanted to do as a career. She took a unit secretary job at a hospital and real- ized pretty quickly that her favorite part of the job was helping the nurses take care of patients. “I enjoyed the interactions with the patients and believed if I chose a career in nursing, I could make a difference in the lives of others,” she said. Ballard became a charge nurse early in her career, but ultimately spent about 10 years in the Emergency Department as a nurse. She said that the Emergency Department was always her passion. “I enjoyed the fast pace and the quick thinking that you had to do,” she reminisced. “I wanted to care for patients when it mattered the most. No one ever plans to go to the Emergency Department, and I just wanted to be the nurse that passionately and compassionately cared for them at possibly the worst time of their life.” She is now the director of emergency services, intensive care, cardi- ac cath/vascular lab and outpatient infusion services with the Mary Black Health System in Spartanburg. “I appreciate so much the opportunities I have been given to learn about all the different areas of the organization,” she concluded. “It has broadened my knowledge and made me a better leader.” LAURA HORTON, RN, BSN Laura Horton knew she loved caring for oth- ers as a teenager, when she wanted to work at an assisted-living facility as her very first job. “When all my friends were working in the mall or at restaurants, I was working as a nursing assistant in an assisted-living center,” she said. “Back then, I thought I wanted to be a doctor.” And she did indeed start the premed course- work at Clemson University. She worked as a nursing assistant in an orthopedic unit for three years during college. It was a chance encounter with the dean of nursing that would change her mind and set her on the path of a nursing career. “I was given a front spot in the nursing program that at the time had a two-year waiting list, so I jumped at the opportunity,” she said. She was offered an externship in the ICU/CCU unit at St. Francis Hospital in Greenville and then transitioned to being an RN on that same unit after graduation. “I worked as an ICU/CCU nurse for 16 years, and, in 2017, I was offered the director of nursing position at Waterstone on Augusta,” she said. Now as the director of nursing at the Waterstone on Augusta senior com- munity, she feels her nursing journey has come full circle. “It all makes sense now,” she said. “That 15-year-old girl who walked into a senior community with only a passion to care for others is now in a position to lead others into a most beautiful and rewarding career with seniors. God had a plan, and I am so thankful I followed it.” T H E P U L S E O N UPSTATE NURSES HealthLinks Upstate wants to recognize nurses as the backbone of our medical community and thank them for all their efforts! MIKKI BARRETT, RN, BSN, BSBA Mikki Barrett said she has always been a nur- turer by heart, but she did not originally seek out a nursing career upon graduating from high school. “I actually majored in graphic design and then received a BS in business administration,” she said. After relocating to Greenville from the Myr- tle Beach area in the early 1980s, she enrolled in the Greenville Tech Associates in Health Science Program, took her board exam upon graduation from the program and then enrolled at the University of South Carolina to pursue her BSN, while working full-time in the NICU at Greenville Memorial. “I knew nursing was a great career and that I could do it anywhere,” she said. “I am a nurturer, so both teaching and nursing appealed to me. I finally decided to pursue nursing because I felt it would allow me to serve the community both as a teacher and healer. I’ve been an active nurse for almost 30 years now and have never regretted my decision! My personal rewards have far surpassed any trials and tribulations I have encountered.” Barrett has never looked back and is now the assistant director of health and wellness at Waterstone on Augusta. She feels that her decision to be- come a nurse was the best decision she ever made. Her advice to aspiring nurses: “Although school is sometimes difficult, there is absolutely nothing more rewarding than when you encounter patients and family members who express how your actions have impacted their lives in a positive way. Persevere through the difficult education and rest in the knowledge that you will be impacting others in the most positive of ways.”