Leah Nolan
RN, BSN, CCRN, BCPA
Garnet RN Patient Advocacy
Leah Nolan
RN, BSN, CCRN, BCPA
Garnet RN Patient Advocacy
Advocate Location
Dallas , TX 75229
Specialty
Medical Guidance
Other Services
Special Care & Aging
TeleAdvocacy Available
Offers FREE Initial Consultation
*Greater National Advocates Terms of Use Apply
How I Can Help
As your independent nurse advocate, I can help you no matter where you are... in your home, in the hospital, at your facility or at your doctor's appointments. Because I work for you, I'm not held back by allegiance to a certain hospital, hospital system or insurance company. You are always the captain of your own ship, but with the support you need to be confident in your own healthcare decisions.
The services that I offer include:
Medication and disease education:
Confused with a long list of diagnosis and medication? I will work with you to understand your medications and your treatment plan completely, working with your providers to ensure that your plan of care is optimized and each piece of the puzzle fits together seamlessly. If you are presented with new medications or treatment options, I can help you research these choices and support you to make an informed decision.
Care coordination:
I will assist you with finding and coordinating multiple providers and appointments, and ensure each is informed of what the others are doing and changing.
Hospital and crisis management:
Have you or your loved one been recently been admitted to the ER or hospital and you find your head spinning, overwhelmed by beeping alarms, endless specialists and an unfamiliar environment? I can come to your bedside, take a brief but thorough assessment, and assist you with familiarizing yourself with the hospital and coordinating care with the various specialists that will be involved in caring for you or your loved one. A little bit of support and education can turn a nightmare into a clear path forward.
Disconnect and dispute resolution:
Are you feeling like you or your family member are getting lost in the cracks of the complex health system? Whether your voice is not getting heard, your choices are not being respected, or you are having difficulty accessing the care you need, I will be your partner in resolving these problems. Because I speak "their language", I can be the messenger and go between to ensure that your needs are being met while ruffling the minimum amount of feathers or creating uncomfortable situations by you having to do it all yourself. Let me take some of this weight from you.
Disclaimer: RN Patient Advocacy is not medical advice, and I cannot be held responsible or guarantee any particular outcomes. I will not make choices for you or assume liability for any outcomes related to those choices.
The services that I offer include:
Medication and disease education:
Confused with a long list of diagnosis and medication? I will work with you to understand your medications and your treatment plan completely, working with your providers to ensure that your plan of care is optimized and each piece of the puzzle fits together seamlessly. If you are presented with new medications or treatment options, I can help you research these choices and support you to make an informed decision.
Care coordination:
I will assist you with finding and coordinating multiple providers and appointments, and ensure each is informed of what the others are doing and changing.
Hospital and crisis management:
Have you or your loved one been recently been admitted to the ER or hospital and you find your head spinning, overwhelmed by beeping alarms, endless specialists and an unfamiliar environment? I can come to your bedside, take a brief but thorough assessment, and assist you with familiarizing yourself with the hospital and coordinating care with the various specialists that will be involved in caring for you or your loved one. A little bit of support and education can turn a nightmare into a clear path forward.
Disconnect and dispute resolution:
Are you feeling like you or your family member are getting lost in the cracks of the complex health system? Whether your voice is not getting heard, your choices are not being respected, or you are having difficulty accessing the care you need, I will be your partner in resolving these problems. Because I speak "their language", I can be the messenger and go between to ensure that your needs are being met while ruffling the minimum amount of feathers or creating uncomfortable situations by you having to do it all yourself. Let me take some of this weight from you.
Disclaimer: RN Patient Advocacy is not medical advice, and I cannot be held responsible or guarantee any particular outcomes. I will not make choices for you or assume liability for any outcomes related to those choices.
Important Information About Me
- I offer a FREE Initial Consultation
- I offer TeleAdvocacy Service
- I am insured
- My geographical area of practice is Dallas and surrounding cities
Why I Became A Professional Health Care Advocate
I’m a nurse who has worked over 15 years in nearly every hospital setting, with 5 years as a nursing assistant and nearly 11 years as a registered nurse. I used to dream of staying at the bedside forever, because I firmly believe that patients deserve experienced nurses! The COVID pandemic drove so many experienced nurses away from the bedside, leaving many young nurses in need of guidance and teaching. I felt it was my duty to keep my skills and experience at the bedside and tend to patients myself. However, when I learned about independent patient advocacy, I felt like the key to a secret garden had been given to me. My favorite aspect of my job as a nurse has always been advocating and problem solving for my patients. Since I have worked most of my adult life in a safety net hospital serving primarily underserved, underinsured, indigent and incarcerated patients, I saw just how many problems there are in our complex medical system to solve.
I really felt that the fire was lit in my soul the day that I cared for a patient in the post-operative care unit. She had been hospitalized for months with a severe and painful infection, and because of unit policy, she had not been able to see her two young children at all. She had become withdrawn and was refusing to eat, to the point that they were talking about inserting a feeding tube! The problem could not be more obvious to me as a mother myself. I made so many phone calls that afternoon, but was able to secure her a policy exception for her children. Although this was technically “above and beyond” and maybe even overstepping (I was only supposed to be recovering her and sending her on), I could not believe that no one had fought for her in this way before. Although my own manager was excellent, while I was doing all of this I couldn't help but worry about any nasty emails I would later receive from some other level of management for stepping on toes. It was worth it, as I later learned that after her visit with her children she began eating again and made a full recovery. I have many such stories like this in my 15-year career.
Although I would not learn about independent patient advocacy or become certified until years later, I can say that this was a huge "wake up" for me to realize that having the wealth of nursing experience and staying at the bedside for these patients was not enough. I needed to become an independent advocate.
I have worked in nearly every area of the hospital and have served the last two years as an "ICU float nurse", someone who is qualified to work in and adapt to nearly every environment. This has honed my critical thinking, collaboration and bedside manner as I have to be quick on my feet and build relationships on the fly. Because I still actively work at the bedside, I can keep abreast of the trends in medicine and stay familiar with what is available to you. Because I work for YOU, I don't have to worry about anything but YOUR needs. I look forward to using these skills to help you or your family members receive safe, compassionate, informed care.
I really felt that the fire was lit in my soul the day that I cared for a patient in the post-operative care unit. She had been hospitalized for months with a severe and painful infection, and because of unit policy, she had not been able to see her two young children at all. She had become withdrawn and was refusing to eat, to the point that they were talking about inserting a feeding tube! The problem could not be more obvious to me as a mother myself. I made so many phone calls that afternoon, but was able to secure her a policy exception for her children. Although this was technically “above and beyond” and maybe even overstepping (I was only supposed to be recovering her and sending her on), I could not believe that no one had fought for her in this way before. Although my own manager was excellent, while I was doing all of this I couldn't help but worry about any nasty emails I would later receive from some other level of management for stepping on toes. It was worth it, as I later learned that after her visit with her children she began eating again and made a full recovery. I have many such stories like this in my 15-year career.
Although I would not learn about independent patient advocacy or become certified until years later, I can say that this was a huge "wake up" for me to realize that having the wealth of nursing experience and staying at the bedside for these patients was not enough. I needed to become an independent advocate.
I have worked in nearly every area of the hospital and have served the last two years as an "ICU float nurse", someone who is qualified to work in and adapt to nearly every environment. This has honed my critical thinking, collaboration and bedside manner as I have to be quick on my feet and build relationships on the fly. Because I still actively work at the bedside, I can keep abreast of the trends in medicine and stay familiar with what is available to you. Because I work for YOU, I don't have to worry about anything but YOUR needs. I look forward to using these skills to help you or your family members receive safe, compassionate, informed care.
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