Rachel Chamberlin, MSN, FNP

When I meet with patients I don’t just talk to them; I like to listen. It’s important to make them feel heard. I acknowledge my patients feelings and concerns. I reassure them that they can always reach out with questions and concerns if they don’t understand or remember something. I grew up in this area so I am dedicated to helping my community. My mother was a nurse, and I grew up going to work with her. That stuck with me when I decided to choose a career path. Then I wanted to grow my knowledge and have the opportunity to do more, so I went back to school to become a nurse practitioner. Family medicine gives me the opportunity to reach more patients and see a little bit of everything. A successful outcome is when a patient is satisfied with their care, regardless of the diagnosis. I love hearing comments from patients that state they enjoyed my care and they felt listened to. They tell me that my explanations and our treatment plan clearly responded to the concerns they shared. The most rewarding thing about my work is helping my patients feel better, whether that is mentally or physically. I enjoy when I follow up with patients after an initial appointment and they are seeing improvements.

I’ve always loved the idea of surgery. The order and the complexity, excited me. I like the twist of bariatric (or weight loss) surgery because it includes long-term follow-up visits. I get to make relationships with patients and know them for a long time. We want to send them home with enough information to be successful and to feel like they can take care of themselves independently. It's very rewarding and a good fit for me. Half of my job is education. When I see patients, I try to make things as clear and easy to understand as possible. It's often hard for patients to take everything in, and it's easy for them to get overwhelmed, so I just try to support people. I am a very good listener and really let people open up, not just spew information. Patients appreciate that I take the time to explain things and make them feel comfortable. We have a great program here at Cheshire. Everybody cares a lot and really puts the patient first. It's very rewarding listening to how happy people are with their results. I enjoy seeing people feel better about themselves, hearing that they have more energy and feel better physically and emotionally.