Nurse finds home with WATCH
By Phyllis Moore
Published in News on March 2, 2016 1:46 PM
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
Nurse practitioner Kelli Corbett for the WATCH mobile medical unit stands beside the van that she drives around the county three days a week to provide health care for the uninsured. The Wayne County native, who was a nurse for 13 years before earning her master's degree as a nurse practitioner, said when she did a student rotation on the WATCH van she knew that it was the job she wanted.
Kelli Corbett had been a nurse for about 13 years when she decided to return to school to become a nurse practitioner.
But it wasn't until her last rotation, on the WATCH mobile van, that she found herself squarely in the center of her calling.
"I didn't have a specific plan. I wasn't sure exactly what I was going to do but as soon as I started my last semester and this was my clinical site, I knew -- I can do this," she said. "This is what I was meant to do."
While completing her master's degree to become a nurse practitioner, she spent nearly four months with WATCH, or Wayne Action Teams for Community Health. Her first impression of the clientele, she said, while grateful, was also that they were "caught in the middle."
"They can't afford health insurance and they're not eligible for Medicaid, they're not old enough for Medicare," she said.
The experience opened her eyes to a completely different side of health care, one where she could make a real difference.
"I mean, they have no other resources. I'm their resource," she said. "It's kind of up to me to not only manage their health care but to find resources that are out there in the community.
"When I was a student (there), I said, 'If you get a job opening, I want it.'"
As luck would have it, when she graduated and received her credentials, there was an opening for a lead nurse practitioner. She was hired in December.
She knew she wanted to continue working at Wayne Memorial Hospital, she says. So the role in the clinic for the uninsured of Wayne County provided a whole new meaning to the job.
"I love the patients. Despite the obstacles -- insurance, money, transportation -- you have to have the knowledge and you have to have the good bedside manner to work with the community," she said. "A lot of these people, they're intimidated. They have never had health care before.
"A lot of these people have a lot to open up about and it's up to you to kind of pick it apart."
Her role, in a nutshell, is to make lives better by offering patients quality care.
It can run the gamut from treating a minor cold to dealing with diabetes, hypertension, COPD and women's health. No two days are alike, she says.
"I would say we manage chronic conditions. We manage preventive, a lot of preventive, teaching, educating, tons of that," she said. "We have supplies on the truck. We can drain abscesses and things like that if we need to.
"We just had a patient recently. It wasn't my patient so I'm speaking for somebody else but one of the practitioners just knew (the patient) needed a pap smear. They did an ultrasound and she was diagnosed with cancer."
It definitely takes a special person to do community health, she admits.
"You can't just come out and take this job not understanding what WATCH is about or you're going to be disappointed," she said. "You have to want to serve the community."
In addition to being a supervisor and health care provider, the job also requires driving the massive mobile van around the county.
None of that intimidates her, though. She has worked her way through school -- part-time jobs, full-time jobs, all to pay her way and achieve her goals.
The message of hope is one she understands and readily wants to pass on to those she serves.
"I know that you can do and be anything you want to be. I'm just very grateful that I had the opportunities that I did and that I have made it as far as I have. I want to just help other people and give back to the community that I'm part of," she said. "I grew up here. It's my home. I've never been one that wanted to move away. I never thought there were bigger and more things.
"It's kind of a cliché I guess but I've always loved where I lived -- small town, farm community. That's how I grew up. I've always wanted to stay in this area. And I've always had a soft spot for people that were less fortunate and didn't have everything."
She is keenly aware of the needs that WATCH meets, and not just physically. Some of the job means providing emotional support as well.
"You can have a lot of homeless people, you don't realize, living a few miles away," she said. "I go home to my family, my food and my warm house, just all the amenities. You don't realize people five miles from you don't have that. And you can't take everybody home with you so this is just my way of doing what I can do to help them.
"It's not just a job to them, and it's not just a job to me. It's way more than that."
Sometimes the rewards are as basic as seeing patients come in for a return visit, feeling better.
"They're very grateful people," she said. "The ones that take the time to get up and come to you and follow the plan of care are so grateful for what you're doing and they want to take part in their health care. They really do.
"And they trust you. They don't have access to the Internet. You're the first and final opportunity for most of these people. They put a lot of trust in what you're telling them. It's just a good population."
In a few weeks, Mrs. Corbett will take a break from the role, with good reason. She is expecting her second child April 4, which will be followed by maternity leave.
If she had her way, though, she wouldn't stop seeing her patients for even a second.
"I told them they could set the truck up at my house if they want to," she said with a laugh. "Set it up, I will see patients.
"It's fun. It's just such a rewarding job."