Debra LeMay recently joined the Bridges® by EPOCH at Mashpee team as the community’s first wellness director. With more than 20 years of experience working with seniors as well as personal experience caring for a loved one with dementia, Debra has brought a wealth of knowledge to the Bridges® by EPOCH family.
As wellness director, Debra will oversee the daily operations of the wellness staff, including certified nurse’s aides and licensed nurses, as they work to make everyday a success for residents. Her daily duties will also involve the coordination of services, initial and ongoing assessments and evaluations of residents for admission as well as evaluations to meet their ongoing care needs.
Most recently, Debra was the director of nursing for a senior living community that provided memory care. She has more than 25 years of experience working in various nursing settings and has spent the past 20 years directly involved in caring for seniors within an independent or assisted living community setting that provided care based upon the individual needs of the resident.
A registered nurse, she is certified in dementia care, BLS/CPR, and is working toward her geriatric certification. Desiring to stay up-to-date on the latest research, Debra is always on the lookout for educational opportunities, particularly involving the causes, signs, symptoms and treatments for dementia. “The science and knowledge we learn is ever changing,” she said. “One must continue to keep apprised of the information out there.”
Because dementia has touched her life, she understands what family caregivers are going through and uses her experiences to influence her caregiving approach, particularly when creating and implementing individualized plans of care.
It was her personal experience with dementia that inspired her to pursue her nursing career after first going to school for computer science. Having accepted an internship with a large banking firm in New York City, Debra decided to walk away after moving back home to care for a loved one. “I found my calling and never looked backed at the business world,” she said.
For Debra, it’s the pleasure seen when a resident has a successful week, day or even moment that she enjoys most about working in memory care. It’s the “joy in the face of someone who accomplishes a task that is monumental to them,” she said. “The brain is a vital organ just like the heart, lung and kidneys that requires care. To specialize in this aspect of nursing is by far, my greatest accomplishment.”
A resident of East Sandwich, Debra has been a Cape Cod resident for 30 years. She looks forward to providing the Bridges® standard of care to Bridges® by EPOCH of Mashpee’s residents.