Meet Tiffany LaSister, RN, BSN, MSN, FNP-BC, a Truly Compassionate family nurse practitioner (FNP) in the Department of Adolescent Medicine at Northwell Health.

Today, Tiffany works in a school-based health center within the August Martin High School in South Jamaica, Queens through Northwell Health. However, her journey with us started as a telemetry nurse at North Shore University Hospital (NSUH) in 2005. As she advanced her credentials, Tiffany’s opportunities within the health system grew and she later worked as a float nurse at LIJ Medical Center.

Working as a registered nurse, Tiffany developed a strong desire to expand her knowledge and scope of practice by becoming a nurse practitioner. “My grandmother was an RN at Bellevue hospital in the 60s and she was one of the driving forces behind my educational advancement,” says Tiffany.” I felt a strong commitment to seek out new challenges in order to meet the evolving needs of society.” With this motivation and with the support of Northwell Health’s tuition reimbursement program, Tiffany returned to school and completed her master’s degree and became an FNP.

As an FNP, Tiffany returned to NSUH in 2014 to work within the Medicine Department. There, she later had the opportunity to work with their home care team, delivering care as a visiting NP for advanced illness and palliative care. Continuing to grow her skills, Tiffany joined the Department of Adolescent Medicine in 2019 where she now delivers care primarily to adolescents.

However, during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, Tiffany was redeployed to LIJ Valley Stream (LIJVS) to help deliver care to the increasing number of patients. Though working throughout such an unprecedented global pandemic was challenging, Tiffany found hope and support through the Northwell team. “The year 2020 left an imprint on my heart that will remain forever. I have never been more thankful for my colleagues then I was at that time,” says Tiffany. “Working during the pandemic has not only made me a stronger clinician, but a stronger person as well. I learned how to adapt, strengthened my skills, and also served as a clinical investigator for the COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma Study at LIJVS. Although the time was difficult, I am thankful for the opportunity to serve my patients and community.”

It was Tiffany’s unwavering dedication and compassion for her patients that led to her being recognized within her community as well. This February, Tiffany was recognized as an essential worker by the Nassau County Office of Minority Affairs as part of their Black History Month celebration after being nominated by a neighbor in her community. “As a local resident, I am honored to serve my community by working at LIJ Valley Stream during the pandemic,” says Tiffany. “This award would not have been possible without the support I have received from my colleagues, for whom I have the deepest respect, and from whom I have derived the strength to challenge myself and perform better at each stage in my career.”

And for any other nurse practitioners or clinicians looking for the next step in their career, Tiffany recommends Northwell Health. “Here at Northwell, we are embraced for who we are, our different cultures and different personalities. The teamwork here is amazing,” says Tiffany. “Our focus on our patients and their families isn’t just part of our culture, it’s the core of who we are and what we do.”

Discover a career well cared for at Northwell Health. Explore our open NP jobs today.

At Northwell Health, we are committed to helping our team members to develop their skills and gain a foundation for a lifelong career journey. With that in mind, Northwell Health’s Advanced Clinical Provider (ACP) team launched a one-year mentorship program to support ACPs who are new to our health system.
Our first cohort, a mix of 20 Nurse Practitioners (NPs) and Physician Assistants (PAs), recently celebrated their graduation from the program with a virtual ceremony. Each of our NPs and PAs had been matched with an experienced ACP mentor who worked with them throughout the year to develop essential clinical and non-clinical skills for a successful career.
Throughout the program, ACP mentees were able to enhance skills beyond their clinical knowledge by learning about our organization and self-awareness. By connecting mentors and mentees, the program fostered relationships that will create a support system for all ACP team members beyond their specialty and site.
A mentor can be especially helpful for NPs and PAs coming into a health system as large as Northwell Health, with 74,000+ team members, 23 hospitals and 800+ ambulatory locations. “Mentorship is extremely valuable for any new hire, regardless of clinical experience, into a large system,” says Jennifer Laffey DNP, FNP-BC, AVP, Advanced Clinical Providers. “Having a mentor can help navigate any non-clinical challenges as well as provide direction for clinical aspects as well. Mentees gain organizational awareness from their mentors and direct insight to all the opportunities the health system has to offer.”
The virtual graduation celebrated the relationships that had been built throughout the successful program, highlighting testimonials from both mentors and mentees on the impact they had on each other. Mentors and mentees shared stories of how they were able to learn from each other throughout the year-long program, encouraging each other to grow and see things differently.
“No matter what role you are in it is always helpful to have a guide, a coach, or a cheerleader to help navigate day-to-day personal or professional activities,” says Sheila Davies DNP, ANP-BC, senior administrative director, Advanced Clinical Providers. “Two areas that resonate with me when discussing mentorship programs are the value of friendship and nurturing that mentorship can provide. Thoughtful guidance and support can often inspire an individual’s trajectory and the relationship that was developed will often be everlasting.”
Congratulations to all of our NPs and PAs on graduating from this exciting new program!
Start your ACP career at Northwell Health. Apply today.

This blog is part of a series highlighting Northwell Health’s Advanced Clinical Providers (ACP). Each Northwell Health employee was nominated by their leadership as an individual who exemplifies a Northwell Health value.
When Michael Hanson, a neurosurgery physician assistant (PA), started at Huntington Hospital six years ago, he was joining a team that would grow with his career. What once started as a department of two PAs has expanded to now include nine PAs on the service, ensuring Huntington Hospital has an in-house neurosurgery PA around the clock as it offers 24/7 service to our patients.
Michael was able to play a large part of developing the team by recruiting new team members from practitioners he had worked with in the past. It was a unique opportunity to help build a team based on experience, strong skill sets, and work ethic in an emerging department that excited Michael. This passion for growth and leadership within the neurosurgery team led to Michael being promoted to a senior PA in 2017.
“The work we do as PAs is important and I truly feel it makes a difference,” says Michael, who passionately advocates for the PA profession in his senior role. “We have the ability to both impact patients’ lives and outcomes, and comfort and educate families in their time of need.”
At Northwell, he knows the skills of our PAs are valued and supported with the opportunity to grow within the whole organization even beyond clinical roles. “When I look at the senior leadership in the system and see several PAs holding high-level administrative positions, it shows that the only limitation we have here as ACPs is set by our own ambitions.”
And the invaluable and diverse skills of our PAs was never more apparent than throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. With non-emergent surgeries paused at Huntington Hospital, the neurosurgery team joined other teams in the newly created temporary ICUs where they played a vital role in alleviating the pressure of an increased number of critical patients.
“Due to the nature of the disease, we suddenly had an extraordinary number of central lines, arterial lines, and dialysis catheters that needed to be placed on a daily basis,” explains Michael. Working with Dr. Kerr, the chief neurosurgeon at Huntington, Michael helped develop a vascular access team to free up the intensivists from placing these lines so they could instead focus on the patients. The teamwork Michael witnessed made him prouder than ever to work at Huntington Hospital. “Even though we have now returned to our normal roles, you see the people you spent those difficult days with and you have that shared experience that bonds you. The sense of trust and community has never been stronger.”
It’s a sense of community that Michael feels extends to not only his team, but to administration and through the organization as a whole. The Truly Together atmosphere gives everyone a place to have their voices heard and their careers supported. Since starting at Northwell, Michael’s felt his desire to learn and grow encouraged with a variety of resources to accomplish that from the skills lab, to CMEs, to conferences.
“The thing I have come to appreciate most about working for Northwell is the support I have received from the system. The administration has always been not just available, but enthusiastic about doing whatever it takes to elevate the service to impact patient care in a positive way,” says Michael. These resources are something he’ll continue to take advantage of as his career keeps growing. “As one of the largest healthcare systems in the world, the diversity of positions, opportunities for advancement, and resources available to help you become the best ACP you can be at Northwell are second to none.”
Find a PA career that grows with you at Northwell Health when you join the team that the American Academy of PAs designated as a 2020-2021 Employer of Excellence. Apply to one of our PA jobs today!

Bouncing back and forth in nautical step with the rough tide of the San Francisco coast, Bryan Lovejoy, DNP, 37, and his eight-person team passed under the Golden Gate Bridge; then the Bay Bridge in a small US Coast Guard patrol boat.

It was March 8, 2020.

“It was actually a nice little cruise when you get right down to it,” Mr. Lovejoy said, despite the sounds of seasickness surrounding him. “There were whales at one point, just kind of jumping around out there.”

Passing Alcatraz, the nurse practitioner at North Shore University Hospital (NSUH) — now farther than 3,000 miles from home — knew they were getting close to their destination — a 1,000-foot, 14-deck luxury cruise liner carrying 2,300 passengers and 1,100 crew members. The Grand Princess had been stuck 50 miles off the coast for days due to COVID-19 spreading rapidly among those onboard.

“I was kind of nervous about it. I saw the news,” he said. “The plan at the time was to try to keep this novel coronavirus out of the US as much as we could. Of course, we soon found out community spread was inevitable.”

The father of two and Smithtown, NY, resident is part of a 30-member disaster medical assistance team (DMAT). On behalf of the Department of Health and Human Services, DMAT responds to areas impacted by a health care crisis, like natural disasters, when local response capabilities are impaired.

In 2017 Mr. Lovejoy spent two weeks in both Houston and Puerto Rico in response to deadly hurricanes.

“You just don’t know what you’re going into entirely,” he said. “The situations are very dynamic.”

But, from March 8-9, an eight-person DMAT contingent faced a threat unlike any they had seen before.

“Our main objective was to identify how prevalent COVID-19 was on the ship before taking passengers off,” said Mr. Lovejoy, who joined DMAT in 2007. “Not many people had any experience with this virus yet, and definitely not on a cruise ship.”

Mr. Lovejoy’s coworkers at NSUH saw their first COVID-19 patient March 7, while he was heading out west to his next mission.

“Especially under the circumstances we are in during a crisis, it takes a leader like Mr. Lovejoy to put aside his personal priorities and become actively involved in a life-threatening mission like this,” said Susan Wirostek, nurse manager at NSUH.

There are two months each year during which a DMAT volunteer can be called into service, which is why Mr. Lovejoy keeps a bag packed with some basic necessities.

“You never really get used to it,” said Mr. Lovejoy’s wife, Dawn, 39. “Every situation is different. They’re all anxiety producing in their own way.”

The call for this latest mission came just before midnight on March 6. After spending a day with their kids, Julia, 9, and James, 5, he and Dawn were watching a movie — John Wick 2.

“Sometimes I have very limited notice,” he said, adding he still hasn’t seen the end of that movie. “I’m given my travel orders, I pack my bags and I’m out within a day going to wherever this is.”

Mr. Lovejoy was on a plane by 8 a.m. the next morning. Leaving his family, he said, is often the most difficult part of his work.

“This one definitely stood out as the worst,” Dawn added, “because as time progressed the virus got worse and worse here in New York. I was scared.”

With the Grand Princess in sight, the team of eight braved high swells and dangerous conditions to board a life raft sent to their US Coast Guard transport – the first of two “high consequence, zero margin transfers,” wrote Robert Kadlec, MD, assistant secretary for preparedness and response (ASPR), in a letter of commendation to Mr. Lovejoy.

“After safely boarding the Grand Princess, Mr. Lovejoy quickly demonstrated his clinical competencies and selfless focus on the mission as part of the HASTY rapid triage team, which executed near continuous operations for 29 hours, while wearing bio-containment equipment,” the high-ranking DHHS official wrote.

Jumping from the lifeboat onto the cruise ship ladder, Mr. Lovejoy’s team scaled the massive vessel, rung-by-rung.

“It’s big,” he admitted, quick to downplay the feet. “It didn’t take too long. I just remember thinking, ‘don’t look down and don’t let go.’”

Starting near 7 p.m., Mr. Lovejoy worked through the night and into the next day, performing medical assessments and triage of more than 1,100 US citizens — breaking only for emergency rehydration. Mr. Kadlec wrote that their effort, “played a crucial role in the pre-positioning of critical medical assets, supporting personnel and operational planning by federal, state and local emergency responders.”

With his mission complete, the Grand Princess was allowed to dock and passengers to disembark from the ship. Those that showed symptoms of the virus had to be isolated and those that weren’t had to be quarantined — data now known thanks to Mr. Lovejoy and his team.

“And because of the nature of everything I ended up getting quarantined myself,” said Mr. Lovejoy, whose entire team spent 14 days at the University of Nebraska. “And fortunately we never ended up showing symptoms or getting sick.”

Both in quarantine and upon his return home and to work in late March, the lifelong Long Islander had a heightened fear, Dawn said, of contracting the novel virus.

“I have asthma, so I didn’t know how well I’d respond if I did get it,” Mr. Lovejoy added.

When he left the Grand Princess March 9, there were 647 reported cases of COVID-19 in America, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). By the time he returned home March 23, there were more than 44,000 cases. That number nearly doubled when he returned to work a few days later.

Knowing this – and his particular risk — Mr. Lovejoy knew, still, where he needed to be. Like walking door-to-door on the Grand Princess, he floated from COVID unit-to-COVID unit at NSUH throughout the crisis, treating the explosion of patients showing up daily.

“When he went on the mission and when he goes to work every day, he knows how vulnerable he is,” Dawn said. “So, I consider him just a quiet hero, leading in his own way.”

Join the Northwell Health heroes keeping our patients and communities safe. Explore job opportunities.

This blog is part of a series highlighting Northwell Health’s Advanced Clinical Providers (ACP). Each Northwell Health employee was nominated by their leadership as an individual who exemplifies a Northwell Health value.

When Benzy Thomas joined the Northwell Health team at Long Island Jewish Valley Stream, she had one goal in mind: to make an impact on the lives of her patients and the community as a whole. That was 2011. Now, nine years later, she finds herself making even more of an impact in ways she couldn’t even have imagined.

Today, Benzy functions as a DNP-prepared nurse practitioner leader, designing patient care experiences that impact outcomes and empowering dedicated team members who once stood in her shoes. She says, “I am able to bring a blend of clinical, leadership and organizational skills to the table that puts me in a unique position.”

For Benzy, working as a nurse practitioner at Northwell Health is full of inspiring moments, and being a part of her patient’s recovery is one of her greatest joys. “There is no better reward—that makes my day and that is absolutely why I do it, touching one life at a time,” she notes. But where there is joy, there are also often moments that are challenging.

When COVID-19 threatened the lives of so many, healthcare professionals were looked upon as the heroes that could help turn it around. Amongst those on the frontline was Benzy. She states, “I was directly involved in managing the COVID-19 cases. I will remember everything, but I don’t want to relive it.” And while these times were extremely difficult for Benzy and her team, with her positive outlook, she found a silver lining in it all. While caring for each of her patients and some through their near-death experiences, she recalls thinking to herself, “Family matters, my profession matters, life matters, truth matters.”

Having gained confidence in herself through a number of personal hobbies aside from her professional training, like traveling and acting, the stage was set for Benzy to succeed in healthcare. She adds, “I honestly love caring for people and making a difference in their lives.” That couldn’t be more apparent, especially in the way her fellow nurses and ACPs respond to her wealth of experience and knowledge. She says, “When I interact with nurses they appreciate the journey that I took to get where I am today. I strive to make every moment a teaching moment with the nurses, and at the same time inspire them to further their education so that they can be a vital component of future American health care services.”

At Northwell Health, there are many Nurse Practitioners like Benzy who are always in search of innovative ways to deliver the best care possible and care for the communities we serve. Benzy understands the value of collaboration and the power it holds in creating a transformative experience for Northwell Health’s patients and the healthcare community alike. She champions, “We are made for creating a better tomorrow than today, together as a team. Together we can achieve the impossible.”

Thank you, Benzy. Through your commitment, you are a perfect example of what it means to be a Truly Compassionate, inspired, and a driven ACP at Northwell Health.

This post is a part of a blog series highlighting Northwell Health’s Advanced Clinical Providers (ACP). Each Northwell Health employee was nominated by their manager as an individual who exemplifies Northwell Health values.

Regina is no stranger to delivering care within Northwell Health’s network. Having started her career in 1985 as an RN in the Pediatric ED at Cohen Children’s Medical Center (CCMC) she has grown her career alongside Northwell’s growth as an organization throughout the years, becoming a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner (NP). As a seasoned healthcare professional impacting the lives of others for over 25 years, Northwell continues to provide Regina with the opportunity to learn and develop new skills. Skills that would be essential during the COVID-19 crisis.

Before the pandemic, a typical day for Regina meant examining children prior to surgical procedures and developing a plan of care for them. As the volume of surgeries decreased, Regina knew it would take another level of commitment and compassion to continue to make a difference. With her scope of practice as a Pediatric NP limited to patients aged 21 and younger, Regina volunteered to work temporarily as a registered nurse so she would be able to provide care during COVID-19 to adult patients.

Many team members took on reassignments across the network but Regina notes that regardless of the role that was asked of the staff, each understood the value of their place on the team. “I knew that I worked with an amazing group of people but I had not realized the strength and compassion of our team,” says Regina. As an RN, Regina worked first in the ED at LIJ Medical Center and then on the medical floors to help with increased patient volumes.

Maintaining the same level of compassion from her work as an NP, Regina went above and beyond with her colleagues on the medical floors to create a comfortable experience for patients in need of care by setting up a cart filled with basic items for care such as deodorant, wonderful smelling soaps and lotions, lip balm, among other items, to help patients feel more comfortable and at home. “We added to the cart as we found items patients needed like extended phone chargers so the patients could charge their phones from bed and earphones so patients could block the noise and sleep. I watched my colleagues do so many wonderful things,” says Regina.

The collaborative and helpful spirit of the team members would continue beyond the hours they were needed to work. Building bonds with their patients, Regina and her team members would text to check in on them and even show up to see patients off to rehab or be discharged on their days off. When one patient was discharged after 45 days in their care, Regina and her unit organized a red carpet to see him off.

“The PST ACPs did many things for patients but most importantly they made a personal connection, finding out about them, their history, and their family,” Regina says. And though there were extremely challenging moments as some patients lost their fight against COVID, the team still found ways to rally and provide each patient with the best care possible.

Northwell offers unique opportunities for each employee to learn and grow, and for someone as compassionate as Regina, it’s the perfect place to be. Regina says, “I am so proud to be an ACP at CCMC, and at Northwell. The past few weeks have truly made me appreciate how special my colleagues and Northwell are. We have met so many exceptional team members who work in a variety of roles here. They are truly ‘Made for this.’” All of us are proud of Regina, a Truly Compassionate ACP!

If you’re Made for working with a team of exceptional advanced clinical providers, explore our ACP opportunities at Northwell Health.