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Celebrating Nurse Practitioners’ Role in Health Care

For more than 50 years, nurse practitioners have been doing what they love: taking care of people as part of a system that provides high-quality, personalized health care. It’s National Nurse Practitioner Week which gives us an opportunity to celebrate our many contributions to the health care field.

Right now, there are more than 270,000 nurse practitioners throughout the country providing a full-range of services that include primary care, diagnosing and treating health conditions and performing and interpreting diagnostic tests. But for many of us who chose the profession, the most important aspect is the personalized interaction with the patients we take care of on a daily basis.

That personal connection is what motivated us to become nurse practitioners as a second career. We both felt something was missing working in a lab and an administrative setting and wanted to be closer with patients. We had a desire to engage directly with people and gain satisfaction from helping them get well. We also knew that our past experiences would allow us to bring a sense of caring that would benefit both us and our patients.

Working for John Muir Health allows us to fulfill this vision. The health system understands and embraces the role nurse practitioners can play in health care. We have a voice that is not only listened to, but valued, allowing us to have an impact on how patient care is delivered.

We also appreciate that John Muir Health focuses on care for the whole patient, which allows us to not only diagnose and treat a specific condition or disease, but also determine how we can more broadly serve our patients to keep them well. Whether it’s the Walnut Creek Medical Center or the Berkeley Outpatient Center, John Muir Health ensures the resources are available to provide the best possible care to patients.

We appreciate working at John Muir Health because it gives us the resources we need to provide high quality patient care and allows us to make an impact on our community, on our profession, and on the lives of others.

National Nurse Practitioner Week

Jennifer Cave-Brown joined John Muir Health in 2012 after receiving her master’s degree in nursing and currently serves as John Muir Health’s Stroke Program Coordinator for both of John Muir Health’s stroke centers. Under her leadership, the Walnut Creek Medical Center achieved Comprehensive Stroke Certification from The Joint Commission. Prior to John Muir Health, she served as a Neuroscience Educator and stroke team nurse for Washington Hospital Healthcare System in Fremont.

Sarah White is currently a nurse practitioner at the Berkeley Outpatient Center where she provides family primary care. She became a nurse practitioner after serving as a cell biologist for four years. Before joining John Muir Health, White was a nurse practitioner for East Bay Family Practice.