Archive for category: Employee Spotlight

At Health Partnership Clinic (HPC) our Nurse Practitioners play key roles. They provide a full range of medical care from pediatric to geriatric and some specialty services. We greatly appreciate their quality of care and service to our patients.

What is a Nurse Practitioner?

A nurse practitioner is an RN who begins with a bachelor’s degree in nursing (RN-BSN). He or she then obtains a master’s degree, Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) or doctoral level, Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP). Nurse practitioners may practice in broad areas including primary care, acute care and specialty care services, practicing either independently or in collaboration with a physician. Your primary care provider may be a nurse practitioner.

What does a Nurse Practitioner do?

Primary Care nurse practitioners see patients in offices or Urgent Care settings, perform routine check-ups and investigate symptoms to diagnose and treat illnesses. Their work varies from wellness visits to managing chronic complex illnesses. They order and interpret lab tests, x-rays and the full range of other diagnostic tests. From your history and test results, they form a treatment plan. Some nurse practitioners perform procedures such as biopsies, suturing of lacerations and fracture care to name a few.

What is the education and training needed to become a Nurse Practitioner?

All nurse practitioners complete a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program and a Master of Science in Nursing (APRN) or Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree. Each nurse practitioner has to successfully pass a certification exam to begin practice.

Do Nurse Practitioners specialize, or do they all practice Primary Care?

About three-fourths of nurse practitioners work in Primary Care but there are many other specialties that can be pursued. These include Psychiatry and Mental Health, Orthopedics, Pediatrics, Nurse Midwife and Women’s Health.

At HPC our nurse practitioners play key roles. Our nurse practitioners specialize in primary care, in psychiatric services and in women’s health. We also employ nurse practitioners who are specially trained in medication assisted treatment of substance abuse.

We are so grateful for our NPs at HPC. Thank you, Tony Anno, DNP, ACNP-BC, APRN; Kierra Calico, MSN, APRN, FNP-BC, FNP-C; Maureen Caro, FNP-BC; Eva Clark, MSN, APRN, WHNP-BC; Thao Le, MSN, APRN, PMHNP-BC; Jennifer Miller, FNP-BC; Rebecca Turner, MSN, APRN, FNP-C; Whitney Venegoni, APRN, FNP-C; Gwenyth Wagner, DNP, APRN; and Patti West, DNP, APRN.

Please take time to thank our Nurse Practitioners for all they do for our patients. Happy Nurse Practitioner Week!

We are very excited to highlight one of our most valuable assets, our employees! Each month, get to know the HPC team in a fun, new way.

Name:  Rachel Acuna, RN

Department: Medical

Title: Vaccine Outreach Nurse

Primary work location: Olathe

How long have you worked at HPC? 

I started at HPC in March of 2022.

How did you get into your field of work?

I got into my field because I finally listened to my mother! She saw the caregiver in me before I figured it out.

Do you speak any other languages? If yes, which ones?

I speak and understand enough Spanish to get by around my husband’s family.

Do you have a favorite quote? If yes, what is it?

“My little dog—a heartbeat at my feet.” -Edith Wharton

What values are important to you?

Values that are important to me are kindness, knowledge and empathy.

What is something about you that would surprise people?

I worked as a roofer one summer during college. That’s 10 times harder than being a nurse!

What is on your “bucket” list?

I want to have a home on the coast in the Brittany region of France where I can spend time after I retire.

What is your favorite food?

I grew up in Tucson, Ariz. eating Sonoran-style Mexican food. It’s THE BEST!

What is your favorite movie?

“The Sound of Music”—I even named one of my dogs Julie Andrews!

What is your favorite hobby?

I love baking and reading. British mysteries are my favorite.

Are you an animal lover?  If yes, how many pets do you have and what kind are they?

Absolutely! I grew up with dogs and got my first of eight Dachshunds in 1995. My husband and I currently have four Dachshunds, three of which are rescues.

We are very excited to highlight one of our most valuable assets, our employees! Each month, get to know the HPC team in a fun, new way.

Name:  Heather McKinney

Department: Administration

Title: Development Director

Primary work location: Olathe

How long have you worked at HPC?  

I have worked at HPC for eight weeks.

How did you get into your field of work?

I was admittedly lost after leaving an engineering career, then I entered grad school and began volunteering and it all came together.

Do you speak any other languages? If yes, which ones?

I speak French with elementary/limited proficiency.

Do you have a favorite quote? If yes, what is it?

“If I had a flower for every time I thought of you, I could walk in my garden forever.” —Alfred Lord Tennyson—it’s the perfect tribute to my mom.

What values are important to you?

Values that are important to me are kindness, compassion, curiosity, peace, fairness, meaningful work, happiness, humor and fun.

What is something about you that would surprise people?

I take ballet classes, and we even have a recital in front of an audience!

What is on your “bucket” list?

I’d love to learn how to play the guitar.

What is your favorite food?

Watermelon is my favorite food.

What is your favorite movie?

“Gleason” – A documentary about a former NFL player who was diagnosed with ALS.

What is your favorite hobby?

Yoga is my favorite hobby.

Are you an animal lover?  If yes, how many pets do you have and what kind are they?

Yes! I have two dogs. Benny is an American Staffordshire Terrier, and Milly is an American Pitbull Terrier.

Editor’s Note: In celebration of 30 years of providing quality, affordable and accessible health care, we are profiling three individuals who have graciously shared their story about their connection with the clinic.

GWEN WAGNER, DNP, APRN, ANP-C
Health Partnership Clinic
Adult Nurse Practitioner, Diabetes Clinic

As Health Partnership Clinic’s (HPC) longest-tenured provider, Gwenyth Wagner, DNP, APRN, ANP-C, has observed an evolution at HPC that mirrors her own career. From very focused origins, both she and HPC have changed with the times to be of greater benefit to the community.

Like many, Dr. Wagner first served HPC as a volunteer.

An accomplished Registered Nurse in her early career, she worked at local hospitals and university health centers prior to completing her Master of Science in Nursing in 2009 at the University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas City, Kan. Seeking to serve those who lacked the medical care opportunities she had seen in her native Toronto, Ontario, she began volunteering at HPC in 2010 — before HPC received its designations as a Medical Home and Federal Qualified Health Center.

For patients who struggled to leave their daytime jobs to receive needed health care, Dr. Wagner helped begin an evening clinic at HPC. And from 2014-2018, she took on an expanded provider role by working daytime hours several days weekly.

Balancing her teaching and practitioner interests — and having received a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree from the University of Kansas in 2014 — she now directs the Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner program full-time at Mid-America Nazarene University in Olathe, Kan. She also leads HPC’s High-Risk Diabetes Clinic, where she performs necessary physical assessments, orders tests and helps patients access appropriate medications. Her team, which serves patients with uncontrollable diabetes, also provides education and behavioral health services.

Community Presence

Helping to expand HPC’s reach, she also serves as Nurse Practitioner Coordinator, connecting area school students with internship-like roles where they gain valuable clinical experience working with HPC providers to coordinate patient care. “Students get a really great experience and a really good sense that this place has a purpose…that it’s fulfilling a community need,” Dr. Wagner says.

She believes that HPC will continue to have a strong community presence for as long as basic medical care is inhibited by financial and accessibility limitations. She quickly adds that HPC has risen to such challenges over the years by adding providers in growth areas, emphasizing quality-focused initiatives and sustaining a positive work environment.

Dr. Wagner has been married to her childhood sweetheart for 36 years. They have four adult sons, two daughters-in-law and six grandchildren. In her “spare time,” she likes to walk, crotchet, knit, arrange family events and play with her grandchildren.

As we celebrate our 30th anniversary, HPC recognizes and appreciates Dr. Wagner, not only for her dedication to the HPC mission of serving patients regardless of their ability to pay, but for fostering a culture of care among the staff and the providers of tomorrow.

Editor’s Note: In celebration of 30 years of providing quality, affordable and accessible health care, we are profiling three individuals who have graciously shared their story about their connection with the clinic.

Veronica Flores, Patient Services Manager at Health Partnership Clinic

Veronica Flores has converted her daughters’ 2012 dental visit at Health Partnership Clinic (HPC) into a career she never imagined.

Veronica, HPC’s patient services manager, oversees a staff of 11 at four locations: Olathe, Paola Ottawa and Shawnee Mission. She and her team provide nearly every non-provider, patient-facing service, from intake and scheduling to working hand-in-hand with the Billing department to ensure accuracy. Along with taking prospective patients’ original requests for appointments and care, they manage the paperwork required for financial assistance or insurance reimbursements.

Originally from Chihuahua, Mexico — and speaking little English — Veronica first came to the Kansas City area in 2006 at the suggestion of friends and family already here. Back then a divorced and single mother, her two daughters followed once Veronica was established with a job and place to live.

Impressed by the high quality of care and reasonable cost for her daughters’ dental visit, she became a patient herself in 2013, seeing Gwenyth Wagner, DNP, APRN — then a primary care provider — and quickly decided that HPC appeared to be a great place to work. With a customer service background and the encouragement of others, she became a patient care representative in 2014 and has been an HPC mainstay ever since. Through transitions, Veronica became assistant manager in 2016 and then department manager in 2018. As the longest-tenured HPC associate who is not a direct patient care provider, Veronica has been credited by managers with raising HPC’s level of patient service and as one who inspires others to follow her lead.

When asked, Veronica enthusiastically says that being able to help HPC fulfill its mission is among her greatest satisfactions. She excels at patient interaction and especially loves to help HPC’s older and Spanish-speaking patients resolve issues often rooted in nothing more than a language or translation misunderstanding. She delights in receiving a card or small token of appreciation from HPC’s patients. It’s not the gift that necessarily matters to her, but more the thought.

Having trained as a bilingual secretary and private accountant at age 16 back in Chihuahua, Veronica is grateful for the unimaginable journey that has brought and kept her at HPC. She became a permanent resident in 2017 and plans to apply for U.S. citizenship after completing a required five-year wait this year.

Along the way, she married her husband, Eduardo, in 2008 and has set a strong example for her daughters, Victoria, age 24, and Valeria, 21, son Angel, 10, and grandson, Mateo, five.

When she’s not leading and inspiring her HPC team and colleagues, Veronica enjoys spending time with her family, reading, traveling and viewing Spanish-themed Netflix programs. An occasional glass of wine with friends she considers family is an added pleasure.

HPC is grateful to Veronica Flores for her dedication to HPC and her daily concern for our patients as we celebrate 30 years of serving the community.