Our People

Celebrating National Nurses Week 2016

At Independence Plus, Inc., we appreciate our nurses every day! There is one week of the year, however, when the spotlight is completely on them. National Nurses Week is celebrated annually from May 6 through May 12. The end date is significant because it marks the anniversary of the birth of Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing.

This week is a great time to thank all nurses for their integral role in health care, and the important work they do every day. To celebrate IPI’s team of nurses who work diligently to care for our medically complex, technology-dependent patients, we have compiled a list of recent blog posts featuring them.

“There is nothing like being at home.”

Community, Featured, General, Our People

José Solorzano was just a teenager when he made a decision that changed his life forever. He says he was “young and dumb,” and found himself involved in gangs.

Are you up for the challenge of high acuity specialty home care?

Community, Education, General, Our People

For nearly 30 years, Independence Plus, Inc. has been providing people with complex medical and respiratory needs the opportunity to live fulfilling lives at home.

One thing that makes IPI unique in the home health care field is that caring for our patients is extremely challenging. Our nurses become trained specialists in directly caring for adult and pediatric ventilator-dependent patients at home, many with rare diagnoses.

Being Mindful About Grief-Related Stress

Community, Education, General, Our People

Not until witnessing many of the people surrounding me experience deaths in their family and recently experiencing a patient death of my own, did I understand how powerful grief can be. It also brings to my attention various stressors that are affiliated with the passing of a patient or loved one.

Someone You Should Know: Sandy Scannell, RN MS, IPI’s Director of Quality Improvement

Community, General, Our People

Those of us in home healthcare in Illinois already know Sandy Scannell. She first worked as a med-surg nurse and then a pediatric nurse. Later she joined the University of Illinois’ Division of Specialized Care for Children (DSCC) as a case manager. For a dozen years, we at Independence Plus, Inc. (IPI) knew her as the nurse who meticulously audited our patient records—and she was particularly exacting! Eventually in 2012, she retired from the State, took the summer off, and then “jumped the fence” and joined IPI’s staff as Director of Quality Improvement. It was great to finally have her sit on “our” side of the table! We sat down with Sandy earlier this week to find out a little more about her career before IPI, as well as what she plans to do next.

Someone You Should Know: Tori, RN

Community, Education, General, Our People

Caring for medically complex patients at home is extremely challenging—but we at Independence Plus love the opportunities to deliver complex clinical care while our patient is in their own home. We train RN’s and LPN’s to become specialists in directly caring for ventilator-dependent patients, many with rare diagnoses.

Not Your Average Home Care Nurse

Education, General, Our People

Home care nurses play a multifaceted role in their patients’ lives. When people are asked about their definition of home healthcare, the answers vary greatly. So what exactly is it?

In Support of ALS

Community, Events, General, Our People

Someone You Should Know: Rowan, RN

Education, General, Our People

Rowan, RN, has always known she wanted to become a nurse. After graduating from Alverno College in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, she saw another learning opportunity in IPI’s year-long Home Nursing Residency Program. Now, just two months shy of completing the program, Rowan says she has learned a great deal from caring for medically complex, ventilator-dependent patients at home, and looks forward to a long career in nursing. We recently sat down with Rowan to find out about her time in the program, what she plans to do next, and what she has learned from her patients.

Someone You Should Know: Christa, RN, IPI Clinical Educator

Education, Our People

One thing that makes Independence Plus, Inc. (IPI) unique is our unwavering commitment to education. Nurses hired at IPI are immersed in a hands-on training and education program designed to prepare them to provide the best possible care for patients with complex medical and respiratory needs living at home. At the forefront of our training process is our Clinical Educator, Christa, RN.

Someone You Should Know: Karen H., RN

Our People

We knew there was something special about Karen H., RN, when we interviewed her for a position in our Home Nursing Residency program. Two years later, she is still getting our attention—and bringing her best self to work caring for our medically complex, ventilator-dependent patients at home.

Community Firefighter with ALS Fights for A Cure

Community, Our People

“In some ways it’s a death sentence,” Dick begins. “But there are many ways to fight ALS. Look around me, there’s my g-tube, ventilator, diaphragmatic pacer… the list goes on.” Dick knows these interventions aren’t for everyone, but it’s his mission to make sure that everyone who is living with ALS knows what’s available to them.

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