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VALERIE WILLIAMS,

MSN, NURSING

MANAGEMENT AND

ORGANIZATIONAL

LEADERSHIP

Pennsylvania Nurse Takes Leadership to Next Level
with MSN

When Valerie Williams earned the BSN in 1987, it was not necessarily the
frequently travelled path. Her mother, in fact, was the one to encourage
Valerie to pursue more than an Associate Degree of Nursing, the standard
at the time. “My mom cared for our grandparents when I was young, and
I had an aunt who was in nursing,” says Valerie, a native of western New
York. “My mom somehow had the wisdom that the BSN would be
important down the road, even if it took me longer. I’m grateful that I
followed her advice.”

A new opportunity—and further education

Valerie started her career with Geisinger Medical Center in Pennsylvania
as a staff nurse in the adult intensive care unit. In the mid-1990s, she had
an opportunity to work in management for a home healthcare agency—
her first foray into management. While there, Valerie earned a certificate
in nursing management from Pennsylvania State University Schuylkill. “I
took the clinical skills I had learned in the intensive care environment
and applied it to the home health setting,” she says. “That combination
of skills was a great asset to patients.”

Return to Geisinger

In 2002, Valerie returned to Geisinger, joining Geisinger Home Care in a
flex role while raising her family. As time went on and her son grew older,
she moved into the emergency room in 2008 as a quality coordinator. “I
worked on projects to improve mortality rates of patients with sepsis and
those who survived cardiac arrest,” she says. After 20 years, Valerie finally
had the leadership opportunity she’d always wanted.

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10 | Transforming Healthcare Through Education