Local nurse practitioner earns national honor

WORLAND - The American Association of Nurse Practitioners has chosen Worland's Sarah-Anne Galloway for the Wyoming's 2021 AANP Nurse Practitioner State Award for Excellence.

Galloway learned of her honor through an email and letter on Oct. 28. According to the letter from the AANP, the "prestigious award is given annually to a dedicated nurse practitioner in each state who demonstrates excellence in their area of practice."

Galloway said last week that she did not know she had even been nominated until learning that she had won the state award.

She said she was nominated by Maria Kidner, the state AANP representative. Kidner wrote, "You well deserve this distinction as you are tenaciously fighting for excellence in the autonomous NP practice life in remote Wyoming."

As for receiving the honor, Galloway said she had to read the email three to four times because it was "not something I expected."

Galloway will be honored for her achievement during the 2021 AANP National Conference at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California June 15-20. The award was founded in 1991.

The award, she said, shows that "the efforts of being a newer NP and trying to provide access to health care in an innovative way and an outside the box way, that it is being recognized at the national level."

She said she hopes winning the honor will help spread the word about nurse practitioners and what they do and the education required.

WILD ROSE

WELLNESS

Galloway got her NP license in January 2017 and began serving patients at Banner Health Clinic. She spent a year in urgent care in Gillette and opened her own practice a year ago, Wild Rose Wellness. She started her own practice in a room at Cloud Peak Chiropractic and Wellness. She recently moved her practice to 1123 Big Horn Avenue, Suite C. She said she has more exam rooms and more space for services.

According to the AANP, "all nurse practitioners must complete a master's or doctoral degree program and have advanced clinical training beyond their initial professional registered nurse (RN) preparation. Didactic and clinical courses prepare nurses with specialized knowledge and clinical competency to practice in primary care, acute care and long-term health care settings.

"To be recognized as expert health care providers and ensure the highest quality of care, NPs undergo rigorous national certification, periodic peer review, clinical outcome evaluations and adhere to a code for ethical practices. Self-directed continued learning and professional development is also essential to maintaining clinical competency."

The AANP adds that, "autonomously and in collaboration with health care professionals and other individuals, NPs provide a full range of primary, acute and specialty health care services, including:

-Ordering, performing and interpreting diagnostic tests such as lab work and x-rays.

-Diagnosing and treating acute and chronic conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, infections and injuries.

-Prescribing medications and other treatments.

-Managing patients' overall care.

-Counseling.

-Educating patients on disease prevention and positive health and lifestyle choices.

There are specialty areas that an NP can focus on.

Galloway is board certified in family practice, primary care focus through the life span of acute and chronic conditions, she said.

She said in December she will complete her post master's in adult gerontology acute care, which focuses on complex, critical and acute care of those adults through the end of their life.

In Wyoming, Galloway said nurse practitioners have full practice authority and global signature authority, meaning they do not need to have a medical doctor oversee their work and whatever a physician can, prescriptions, orders and more, nurse practitioners can also sign.

"I do about everything you can think of in an urgent care, primary care office," Galloway said.

She said since opening her own practice she has seen modest growth for her mostly one-person show. She said her sister-in-law provides office help in the mornings.

Galloway encourages patients to use the easy self-scheduling form online to schedule an appointment. "It is the most efficient or they can stop by," she said.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Galloway had been holding some office hours at the Ten Sleep Senior Center. The center is still closed to services and activities.

She has offered a few home visits through the pandemic, and offers telehealth availability, through video or phone.

"I try to be as accessible as I can," she said.

For patients concerned about COVID-19 the telehealth is a great tool. "Even with a phone call you can get a decent assessment. Being willing to listen to what your patients are telling you is often where you get your diagnosis. Having that conversation leads to asking the right conditions.

"This emphasizes the importance of going back to the basics and that history-taking skill and really taking the time to dive into that. Physical exams are important but a lot of the time the answer comes from that history," Galloway said.

THE DREAM

Galloway's dream was not always the medical field. She first attended college as a wildlife biology major but she had been a first responder and lifeguard through high school in California.

She moved to Wyoming at the age of 19. "I realized day work and ranch handing was not as lucrative as one might think. I woke up one morning and said I want to be an ER nurse."

She said she earned her associate's degree at Sheridan College for registered nurse and license practical nurse degrees.

She worked the ER in Basin, Worland and Colorado where she finished her bachelor's degree.

"I realized that I wanted to have more of an impact than what I could at the bedside. I married a rancher and realized I wasn't going to get to go to a big city (that would offer more opportunities). I didn't want to go into management," Galloway said.

She added that a friend of hers encouraged her to go back to school and consider being a nurse practitioner or physician assistant. "His advice was to pick whichever program I could get through the fastest or the easiest. I got into NP school first and here I am four years later."

She earned her master's degree from Chamberlin College of Nursing. I'm working on my doctorate and post master's in acute care through the University of Nevada-Reno.

Galloway said at Wild Rose Wellness she is striving to offer affordable and accessible alternative to mainstream or traditional health care.

"I emphasize the holistic approach and really not necessarily focusing on a single system or a single issue but how is that impacting all of you. I'm willing to listen and think outside the box, but humble enough that if I don't know I am going to be transparent and come up with a plan, whether that's getting you to someone more versed in the area than I am, or reaching out to a colleague and making those connections.

"I have built a direct care practice. I don't bill insurance inhouse. All of my pricing is upfront," Galloway said.

She does provide a bill that people can submit for reimbursement from their insurance companies.

More information on Galloway and her practice can be found at https://www.wildrosewellness.org/.