Where are they now? Alumni Spotlight: Faleasha Gallagher ’19, MPH’21
Where do you consider home? Where do you currently reside?
Wisconsin will always be my home, as I lived there for 26 years. I moved to Phoenix, Arizona, five years ago and have been here ever since.
Why did you choose the UW–Madison School of Nursing?
I grew up in a small town called Poynette, about 30 minutes from Madison. I always looked up to UW–Madison as the school of my dreams. I wanted to be a Badger, be a part of the research-driven culture, and learn nursing practices from the best.
Explain your journey into nursing and what is your current role?
I started nursing as a CNA and worked in a nursing home, home health, and then SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital – Madison. After graduating [from] nursing school in 2019, I started in SSM Health Madison on 8SW – Respiratory IMC unit and transitioned to the new step-down PCU unit in 2020. In Arizona, I’ve worked in medical critical care throughout the pandemic, and then in 2023 [I] transitioned to Banner – University Medical Center Phoenix to the trauma surgical ICU. I also have a master’s [degree] in public health and have been working with Wisconsin Nurses Association (WNA) since 2021 as their nursing education consultant as my second position.
What’s the most rewarding part of being a nurse or within your current role?
In the trauma surgical ICU, I love that I get to see patients get better after their surgical interventions. Our liver transplant patients come to the ICU for the first 24-48 hours, and typically they do so well and downgrade. It’s great to have a mix of trauma and surgical patients where I work. At my second job, I love working on projects that ultimately help nurses. WNA did a survey and report on workplace violence, and we continue to work on reducing patient-nurse violence and nurse–nurse bullying.
What advice would you give to current nursing students or individuals who are considering teaching or instructing?
Teaching is a great way to give back to the nursing profession. With WNA, I do a lot of coordination of continuing education credits and creation of education. The speakers that are [the] most passionate teachers also live and breathe what they talk about. I’d suggest having a diverse clinical background as an instructor. You never know what you’ll be teaching, but it’s great to have clinical experience to draw from. A lot of the teachers I know have dual roles in hospital or clinic settings and the classroom.
Is there anyone from the School of Nursing who had or continues to have an impact on your nursing journey? If so, how and why?
Dr. Linda D. Oakley taught the class on mental health, and I learned about the various mental health diagnoses and the trauma iceberg. At the time of the class, I thought, “Why are we learning this?” The number of times in my nursing career I’ve had to think through, “what else could be going on here?” is uncountable. I’ve had to understand that my patients have a multitude of issues underneath their physical ailments and find out how to help. Her class and words have stayed with me and given me the framework to get curious about my patients’ mental health. I appreciate her, and I hope she’s still teaching that class and impacting future nurses.
Is there anything else you would like to share?
Nursing is such a diverse career. I urge any future or current nurses reading this to choose the specialty that you’re happy in. Your attitude of how you feel about your work impacts your patients more than you think.