Before launching Matchwell, Rob and Suzanne knew that one of the most important aspects of the business would be verifying the status of each clinician’s credentials. They hit the jackpot when they found Bree Becker. She was a nurse who had also worked as a Clinical Development Specialist and had a direct hand in building out a Critical Event Training program for the facility she was working at. Since joining as the Director of Clinical and Quality, Bree has added a tremendous amount of value to Matchwell through the work she does daily in her department and by lending her insights as a nurse to the entire Matchwell team.
Tell us a little bit about yourself.
I’ve been a nurse for 11 years and I love nothing more than helping people. I’m married to Jeff, who is also the funniest person I know. He’s an amazing high school teacher and Varsity Girls soccer coach. He recently lead his Varsity Girls Team to the state finals, and they won! He inspires me everyday with the enthusiasm, creativity, and love he pours into his students and players.
We have a son, who happens to be the second funniest person I know and the love of our life. It took us 8 years to have him. He reminds us everyday of the precious privilege it is to be parents, while also making us work our tails off ensuring he will be a decent human being. Nursing and teaching are hard professions, but they have nothing on being a parent.
What made you want to be a nurse?
My first degree is in English. I originally wanted to be a high school teacher and a writer (smirk). But then my senior year of college, I had the opportunity to spend the summer in South Africa. While there, my group was involved in a motor vehicle accident. This required me to spend several days in the hospital, which was my first interaction with nurses. They helped me not only recover physically, but they provided much needed emotional comfort since I was so far from home.
Soon after graduating, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was not fulfilling my calling. I could no longer ignore that pull inside me that wanted to impact others the way those nurses impacted me. I decided to go back to school at Georgia State University to get my BSN, and I never looked back. I love being a nurse. To me it’s not just an occupation, but it’s who I am. I love learning and all the opportunities a career in nursing brings me. I recently completed my graduate studies as a Family Nurse Practitioner.
What do you do at Matchwell?
I’m the Director of Clinical and Quality. My job is to ensure we are sending safe and qualified clinicians into facilities. I created and oversee the credentialing process for Matchwell, and my dream is to create and offer educational opportunities for Matchwell clinicians.
What do you like most about your job?
Creating something out of nothing is my happy place. I love the challenge of identifying an issue and the creative process involved in solving the issue. I also like the family stage of our company and how we are all stretched to do things that fall out of our comfort zone – also my happy place. I love the sense of accomplishment, and that I am working with a core group of leaders who are moving towards the same goal: improving healthcare.
What did you do previously?
Previously, I worked as a Clinical Development Specialist for the largest women and infant hospital in the US. I’ve always worked in Women’s Health and found that empowering mothers to care for their infants was my passion. Specifically, I was involved with creating the first ever Critical Event Training for our department and restructuring the competency program from a paper based method to a computer based method.
I also started the first flipped classroom method for our nurse residency program. Instead of having new graduates come to class and listen to hours of lectures, I lead a group of clinical educators to restructure our teaching methodology. We created computer based modules for the new nurses to study prior to their weekly classes. During class time we spent the next 8 hours completing case studies and practical application, leading to more competent and confident nurses entering their first nursing position at our facility.
If you were to start your own business, what would it be?
I have 2 close friends who are also Nurse Practitioners and work in women’s health. Our team dream is to open our own clinic that focuses on health and wellness for women and their newborns the first year after birth. We have seen first hand the rising mortality rate of new mothers. We all went into women’s health thinking it was happy nursing. We wanted to send mothers home with their new babies.
Over the years, there were more times than I ever imagined, we were sending babies home without their mothers. It was heart-breaking not just for the infant, but the spouse who is now a single parent and siblings who have lost their mom. The maternal mortality rate continues to rise in the US despite all the money poured into the healthcare system. The US leads all developed countries in maternal mortality. Research demonstrates a majority of these deaths can be avoided, especially if women receive appropriate care and follow up after giving birth.
My dream is to start in Georgia and provide appropriate follow up high risk women deserve after giving birth. The obligatory 6 week follow up visit with an OBGYN or midwife is not enough and their resources are limited. I want to create a clinic that covers all aspects of health for the mother and child in the first year after giving birth from breastfeeding, infant vaccinations and well visits to managing chronic conditions such as hypertension and diabetes.
What’s something not many people know about you?
I spent a summer in college working as a maid for a hotel chain. Probably the most humbling and edifying job I ever did. It actually prepared me for some aspects of nursing… you know like making beds.
Speed Round:
Favorite Food:
Anything with sugar, flour, and butter
Favorite Quote:
Everybody is a genius. But, if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will spend its whole life believing it is stupid. – Albert Einstein
Spirit Animal:
A lap dog
Intro / Walk-Out Song:
Start a Riot
If money were no concern, I would:
Sell all my possessions, pack up my family, and travel the world.
Most interesting thing you’ve ever eaten:
Haggis. Don’t do it.
Most interesting place you’ve ever been:
Botswana, Africa