Patient Safety Champion nominee Shelley Nickerson leads pressure injury prevention at Roseway Hospital

Shelley Nickerson, licensed practical nurse (LPN) at Roseway Hospital in Shelburne, was one of 65 patient safety champion nominees at Nova Scotia Health this year.

Nickerson began her career with Nova Scotia Health commuting more than an hour each way to South Shore Regional Hospital, where she gained experience and discovered her interest in acute care.

Five years ago, she took a position at Roseway Hospital—just a 10-minute commute—and now leads work on pressure injury prevention, pressure injury audits and fall audits on the medical and alternative level of care units. 

“Pressure injuries are something that can get quickly overlooked and most of the time are avoidable with proper care,” said Nickerson. “We always monitor and initiate turn schedules.  We also try to encourage our patients to get up as much as they can.”

A typical day for Nickerson includes, reading reports, doing rounds on patients, and then assessments, vitals and medication administration.

Pressure injury risk assessment and skin assessment are done on all patients. The senior population is at higher risk because their skin is more fragile. 

There are processes in place and special equipment that can be used to help ensure patients do not get pressure injuries. Examples include offloading boots and specialized mattresses.

“Patient safety and health cover a wide spectrum of things,” said Nickerson. “It’s not just putting bed rails up. It’s us taking the time to think about patient’s care plans and what we’re doing to ensure they get the best care and stay safe in our facilities.”

Patient safety nominees are nominated by their peers and demonstrate a genuine interest in safety and model Nova Scotia Health core values of patient safety.

Nova Scotia Health received 65 patient safety champion nominees from across the province. View the full list of 2023 patient safety nominees (PDF).