St. Anthony Medical Clinic’s Nurse Supervisor Jen

In honor of National Nurses Week, I began a series of profiles of our Clinic nurses, starting with Sister Kathleen Laverty. Last week I spoke with our Nurse Supervisor, Jennifer Mangaccat. Jen has been a nurse at St. Anthony Medical Clinic for 11 years, and her professional focus is on prevention of chronic disease and promoting healthy lifestyles.

 What drew you to nursing?

 “My mom and most of my aunts are nurses, but I never really considered it for myself until my senior year of high school when I became a candy striper at Kaiser. My interactions with patients were limited, but the patients I came into contact with really opened up to me, and I realized I enjoyed talking to people about their health needs.”

 This experience prompted Jen to consider applying to nursing school, which she took on largely as a personal challenge, to see if she could do it. Once she got in, and started doing clinicals, she again found that patients immediately trusted her and opened up to her. Now she was able to provide them with guidance on prevention and how to maintain their health.

 “A lot of my classmates were older and were coming to nursing as a second career. It was a challenging environment, but I realize looking back that that was the first step for me in becoming a professional. It didn’t matter that the other students had other sorts of experiences, I loved working with the patients, and that’s all that mattered.”

 What do you enjoy about working with the patients at St. Anthony Medical Clinic?

 “I like the focus on the community here, and the fact that you have more room to get to know the patients and work with them over a long period of time. Before coming to St. Anthony Medical Clinic, I had worked in a hospital setting and as a home health nurse. Those roles allowed me to see the extremes – it made me aware of how much those without insurance or other support still need someone to care for them. I wanted my own work to be meaningful, to use whatever talent I had to make the most impact.”

 How has nursing impacted your life, and how do you hope to impact the lives of others?

 “After graduating and going immediately into a hospital setting, there were times when I wondered if I made the right choice. But those tough experiences made me stronger. They taught me organizational skills and clinical skills, I even learned about different medicines from floating from floor to floor.”

 Jen’s hospital work taught her how to prioritize and how to lead; it taught her how to get along with lots of different people and, crucially, how to be a member of a team.

 Is there a patient who comes to mind when you think of those whose lives you’ve affected most?

“One of my patients has been coming to St. Anthony’s for over 7 years. He has diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol and some other challenges for which he is medicated. Every week I prepare a medi-set for him so that he’ll take his medications in the right doses.”

When this man first came to the Clinic, he was living in a shelter and didn’t have any continuity or support. He didn’t trust a lot of people and his thick accent made it difficult for people to understand him. Jen worked with him and developed a rapport; she was able to get him connected to Mission Mental Health, and eventually got him into an SRO.  She also helped him get set up with Medi-Cal and CAPI, and brings him toiletries on occasion. Referring to his accent, Jen smiles when she says, “I understand him, so he always comes to see me.” Her diligence and thoughtfulness have brought much more stability to this man’s life, and while he still struggles with his chronic conditions he is in an immeasurably better place now because of Jen’s extra efforts beyond the scope of her clinical work.

“I hope that I can be a resource for people. They shouldn’t have to feel like they need to do everything perfectly in order to be healthy; I want to help people make small improvements, so that they know it’s manageable and so that they trust me enough to share what’s really going on with them. I want my patients to know that this is a safe place to come to. I think especially for nurses it’s important to use your skills to help improve even a small part of a person’s life.”