Clinician Profiles
Our clinicians were the inspiration for our tag line: "Great Clinicians. Great Care." The best way to appreciate what we mean is to hear directly from some of our clinicians about why they enjoy their work at MedOptions and how they make a difference at our client facilities.
Marjorie Arni, APRN, has 35 years of clinical and management experience in the fields of geriatric and adult psychiatry. She is certified as a Clinical Nurse Specialist in Adult Mental Health and is certified as a Professional Counselor by the National Board for Clinical Counselors.
In the early part of her career, she served as director of psychiatric services at private hospitals. After making the decision to return to the clinical arena, she completed her Master’s degree in Professional Counseling. She then moved into positions with geriatric psych and neuropsych units. Marj also worked in nursing home management and was the founder of a 60 bed dementia unit. She became an APRN in 1996 which is when she joined MedOptions.
Commenting on her 10 year tenure with MedOptions, Marj said that what she likes most about her work is that she can use her clinical expertise and experience in a variety of ways ranging from medication management to counseling and staff education. “At MedOptions, I value being able to practice independently, while at the same time helping staff at the nursing homes achieve the best outcomes for the residents. MedOptions has provided me with a variety of experiences over the last 10 years. I am grateful for the relationships that I’ve developed and the people that I’ve been able to help.”
Leslie Stocking-Johnson, APRN, has had a variety of experiences in the field of nursing ranging from working in a hospital cardiothoracic intensive care unit to different teaching positions. Leslie is currently working for MedOptions at nursing homes in New Britain and Windsor Locks, Connecticut.
Leslie has always liked working with the geriatric population. “The elderly population is more diverse than most people would think, and I like the challenge.” Leslie finds her work at MedOptions very satisfying. “When a patient is dying, it is one of the toughest things for a family to go through. Having a nurse practitioner at a nursing home is comforting to a family since she or he can monitor medication and pain management.” The biggest reward to Leslie is the improvement of patients due to her efforts.
Leslie appreciates the support and flexibility she receives from MedOptions to do the work she loves. “I am a mother first and foremost and MedOptions understands that. When I have needed additional time with my family, the company provided my nursing homes with the coverage they required.”
Matt Resinger, RNP, had plenty of experience as a health care provider prior to joining MedOptions, ranging from being a nursing assistant to critical care nurse to NP hospitalist in Internal Medicine. Matt joined MedOptions in the summer of 2006 and is now the Regional Manager in Rhode Island.
Matt enjoys working with the elderly because he finds them easy to communicate with and appreciates their directness. “Nursing home residents are a vulnerable population and I enjoy working with facility staff to support them.”
Matt also enjoys teaching and feels that his work at MedOptions provides him with the opportunity to educate not only the nursing facility staff but the residents’ families. “I find it rewarding to be able to ease a family member’s burden by educating them about what’s happening to their relative and help determine how to achieve the best quality of life at the nursing home or assisted living facility. Another reason I like what I do is because as a nurse practitioner, I extend the coverage provided by physicians to nursing homes, thereby helping diagnose conditions earlier and providing the appropriate course of treatment, including proper management of their medications.”
Nancy Chere, APRN, has 25 years of nursing experience and has been a nurse practitioner for the last 16 years of her career. She consults with and provides treatments to residents of nursing homes located in Shelton and Watertown, Connecticut.
Nancy enjoys working at MedOptions because she can practice independently while being supported by a larger organization. “MedOptions is a respected group of clinicians that is committed to collaborating with nursing home and assisted living facility staff to provide the best care for their residents. It’s great working for an organization that supports the work of its’ clinicians and listens to our concerns and suggestions.”
Nancy finds her day to day work very rewarding. “Recently I was called in to consult with a patient who was in a severe state of dementia. The patient’s family members were so relieved when I identified the appropriate measure to be taken by the nursing home staff to comfort their mother.”
Nancy believes that nurse practitioners play an important role in improving the lives of nursing home residents. “Nurses are trained to take the time to get to know their patients in order to provide excellent patient care. This training is invaluable to nurse practitioners who are also able to direct the treatment of those patients.”
Rhonie Black Tyson, LCSW, a social worker who has worked in various settings, has always been drawn to the older population. So when she began missing the clinical work she didn’t have in her administrative position, Rhonie joined MedOptions.
When asked why she became a social worker, Rhonie said she wanted to help people and liked the versatility and flexibility that came with the profession. She enjoys helping people to find their strengths and abilities and to make their own decisions how to become better people.
Rhonie gave an example of why she loves her work at the nursing homes. She works with a woman in her late fifties who recently lost her significant other and was severely grief stricken over his death. She had lost her self-esteem and shut down. One Saturday, Rhonie brought her Bichon puppy into the nursing home since she knew this woman used to be a breeder. While Rhonie was writing her notes, the woman held her puppy and after that Saturday, she began opening up to Rhonie. They developed a trust that day through a common love for dogs. Rhonie has many stories like this one which is why she loves being a social worker with MedOptions—there is something new everyday.
