The fourth nurse to be recognized and honored by New Hampshire Magazine, in partnership with the New Hampshire Nurses Association, with their Excellence in Nursing Awards is Pamela Laflamme, BSRN-BC, CHFN, a resource nurse at Elliot Cardiovascular Consultants. She was awarded the award for Cardiovascular Nursing.
New Hampshire Magazine’s Write-Up on Laflamme:
Pam Laflamme wanted to be a teacher, but a high school guidance counselor talked her out of it. She looked into nursing, attended a three-year diploma program where she was introduced to clinical rotations in her second month and was hooked.
It was during her critical care rotation that an instructor — “My first nurse-hero,” says Laflamme — modeled a passion for caring for the critically ill with “evidence-based practice and guideline-directed therapy. Although I have not seen her since graduation, I think of her often and still hope I am meeting her tough standards.”
She returned to school after 20 years to complete a Bachelor of Science in nursing, obtaining her certification in cardiac-vascular nursing in 2015. “In 2016, I was the first nurse at the Elliot to earn certification as a certified heart failure nurse,” she says.
“When first diagnosed with heart failure, most patients are eager to learn everything they can about their condition,” she notes. “As they begin to feel better, however, many patient revert to their old habits … and often ‘forget’ the importance of taking their medications and continuing with medical follow-up.”
Reflecting on the irony of her guidance counselor’s advice, she says, “As patients ‘forget,’ I use every opportunity to interact with them, take a few extra minutes to reassess their understanding of their current treatment plan, their adherence to it and then re–teach anything they may have ‘forgotten.’”
The 2020 recipients were announced in New Hampshire Magazine’s June 2020 issue and celebrated during a virtual award ceremony in November. Read the complete list of recipients and watch the virtual awards ceremony here.
Please join us in congratulating Laflamme on her award!
