Donna Upshaw-Combs

Seasoned Registered Nurse (retired disabled Army Nurse Corp officer, Civil Service Nurse with over 30 years of experience providing case management, health promotion and interdisciplinary care team coordination in a number of clinical settings with a focus on public health nursing. Extensive experience in all aspects of clinical leadership case management of patient with infectious diagnosis i.e. HIV, TB, COVID.

Experience in utilization management, direct patient care, policy creation and enforcement, regulatory compliance, and staff training. Continually exceeds expectations by building valuable relationships and works well with people at all levels of an organization including stakeholders, executive management, administration, team members, and patients.

Public Health Nurse - Lyster Army Health Clinic - Fort Rucker, AL

(2012-09)

• Delivering quality nursing care, assistance, and advice to patients and family members including follow-up services.
• Serving as vital access point between local communities and consultant to various agencies in the Fort Bliss Community.
• Working closely with managers and directors to develop/implement new work processes for quality improvement.
• Monitoring patient progress and assisting in solving health problems that resulted in an honorable commendation.
• Effectively coordinating with other district employees, private health care providers, and community agencies.
• Identifying appropriate alternative and non-traditional resources and demonstrating creativity in managing cases.
• Acting as a primary liaison between the high risk veterans, patients/families and doctors, practice nurses, and hospital services.
• Communicating (oral & written) effectively with healthcare providers at all levels and coordinating with providers for services.
• Serving as a patient advocate and providing primary, secondary, and tertiary level of prevention for high-risk soldiers.
• Providing health promotion, clinical guidance, and health prevention services to soldiers and their family members.
• Creating strategies focused on the specific health needs of patients while communicating with operations partners.
• Establishing rapport with professional support service staff, customers, clients, patients, families, and physicians.

Chief (Section Manager) Army Public Health Nursing - U.S. Army - Fort Bliss, TX

(2008-07 - 2011-12)

• Delivered responsive and evidence-based public health nursing services to promote health and wellness for patients.
• Efficiently collected and analyzed data as well as managed admissions, evaluations, and patient treatment plans.
• Established realistic patient-care goals based on assessments and ensured adherence to standardized procedures and other licensing standards.
• Planned and directed educational curriculum for community health programs including creating measurable outcomes.
• Dispensed medications and administered vaccines from the formulary as defined in standardized procedures.
• Provided subject matter expertise and consultation in the areas of APHN Scope and Practice Standardization.
• Ensured regulatory compliance and policy advisement including guidance for human capital distribution.

Chief Preventive Medicine and Army Public Health Nursing - US Army - Fort Riley, KS

(2006-06 - 2008-06)

Chief (Section Manager) Army Public Health Nursing - US Army - Baumholder, Germany

(2004-12 - 2006-04)

Chief (Section Manager) Public Health Nursing - US Army - Fort Rucker, AL

(1998-10 - 2004-12)

Bachelor's Degree - Nursing - Columbus State University (1991)

Master's Degree - Community Health Nursing - Jacksonville State University (2004)

Certification - Documentation Specialist Course - University of South Alabama