Meet Truly Ambitious Shanell Blanchard MPH, RN-OCN

Shanell Blanchard MPH, RN-OCN, started her nursing career in 2014 at Huntington Hospital as an oncology registered nurse. Throughout her career at Northwell she has achieved many accomplishments that have helped her to grow personally and professionally including winning the 2020 Nurse Excellence Award at her hospital. Get to know Shanell, why she achieved this prestigious award and how she is a Truly Ambitious Northwell team member.

Going above and beyond

In her role as an oncology nurse, Shanell embraces the connection she makes with her patients. “I get to go on a journey with them, and however happy or sad it may be, I would not want to do anything else,” she says. Shanell is always willing to go above and beyond to ensure they are well taken care of on that journey. Her role as an oncology nurse also allows her to be a preceptor and lecturer for nursing students in the Oncology Nursing Fellowship. In this capacity, she acts as a role model to new nurse graduates to help them achieve their career and clinical education goals.

Whether teaching or giving back in other ways, she is willing to help anyone in need and get involved with communities near and far. Shanell was offered the opportunity to travel to Texas after Hurricane Harvey with fellow Northwell team members to aid in their clinical efforts. She has also presented at the American Nursing Association conference in Orlando and she is a member of the Huntington Hospital’s Human Trafficking Task Force. “This experience really showed me how much teamwork, community and support means to Northwell,” she says.

While working at Northwell Shanell was motivated to pursue her dreams and obtain a Master of Public Health with a concentration in Health Policy and Management. With the help and encouragement of her managers she partnered with them to have a flexible work schedule so she could complete her studies successfully. Shanell has now taken her dedication to education a step further. She is currently enrolled in law school and looking toward continued growth within her career at Northwell. “I would like to work in leadership and hopefully work for corporate once I have my law degree,” she says.

Her Career Pinnacle

Shanell’s career journey and who she is as a nurse, leader and individual is best exemplified with the Nurse Excellence Award that she received this year.

The award, which is peer and leadership-nominated, recognizes a nurse who inspires other nurses to provide the highest level of quality care and supports them in their development. Other areas considered for this prestigious achievement include, exemplary patient care, a positive image, community involvement, and committee contributions.

Shanell goes above and beyond for her unit and patients, as well as her community, and we are proud to call her a Northwell nurse hero. At Northwell we’re dedicated to patient care, teamwork and we are committed to our employees’ future by providing them with the resources to help them excel like Shanell.

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