Nurse Practitioner Spotlight: Sashalina De Agazio and Sharon Jaspers

Each day during Nurse Practitioner Week (November 13-19), we are spotlighting Nurse Practitioners (NPs) to highlight some (but not all!) of the important roles they fulfill at our Hospital and in our community. Today, we’d like to introduce you to Sashalina De Agazio and Sharon Jaspers.

Meet Sashalina De Agazio

Education

I graduated from the compressed Bachelor of Science in Nursing program at Lakehead University in 2012 and the Masters of Nursing, Primary Health Care Nurse Practitioner program at Queens University in 2020.

Why did you decide to become a Nurse Practitioner?

I became a nurse practitioner (NP) to increase my autonomy and to provide more comprehensive care for my patients.

Tell us about your role with Remote Patient Monitoring Surgical Transitions (SeamlessMD)?

I work in an outpatient clinic providing NP services for patients in Thunder Bay and Northwestern Ontario who have had shoulder, spine, breast, gynecological, and colorectal surgery for up to 30 days post discharge. Services include pain management, medication counselling, wound care or any surgical related concerns. I work collaboratively with NPs, surgeons, physiotherapists and other health care professionals.

What is the most challenging part of your profession?

There have been challenges with understanding the NP role in our health care system. However, we have a changing scope of practice and we are becoming more recognized.

What is the most rewarding aspect of your profession?

The most rewarding part of my job is being able to provide care to a wide variety of patients in the region and making a difference in their lives.

Meet Sharon Jaspers

Sharon Jaspers is a Nurse Practitioner at the Stroke Prevention Clinic at Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre. This outpatient clinic is a program under the NWO Regional Stroke Network. The Stroke Prevention Clinic is designed for people who had a recent TIA or mild stroke and to assist in strategies to prevent a reoccurrence of this event and hence prevent a disabling stroke. Her role is part of an interprofessional team that works collaboratively with two neurologists and well as the stroke program dietitian. She continues to be involved at the provincial level with working groups to enhance Stroke Prevention Care province wide.

Sharon’s background includes working as a Primary Health Care Nurse Practitioner for a local Community Health Centre and she is on faculty as Assistant Professor at NOSM University.