ALUMNI AFFADAVITS - School of Nursing - University of Virginia

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72334_out.qxp 1/12/06 1:28 AM Page 17 “The nurse practitioner profession was new at the time, and we knew that gaining acceptance among other health care providers was not going to be easy. We were taught to be leaders and to stand up for our beliefs.” Debra Hardy Havens Associates, Inc., a bipartisan lobbying, government relations, and public relations firm that specializes in helping clients achieve their goals related to health care issues. That is far from the career path the Chicago native envisioned as she pursued a dual major in nursing and pre-med studies at Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois. Havens planned to work as a nurse to pay her way through medical school at the University of Chicago. But as a just-graduated RN and head nurse in a trauma department, she found that medical school became a less attractive option. “FNP programs were new at the time,” she says. “In searching for one that had a good reputation and flexibility, I discovered the University of Virginia.” She was not disappointed. “The program was cuttingedge, the faculty members were wonderful, and the students formed a really close-knit group,” she says. Although she never practiced nursing with her hardearned credential, Havens believes she learned something from U.Va. that has been useful ever since. “The nurse practitioner profession was new at the time, and we knew that gaining acceptance among other health care providers was not going to be easy,” she says. “We were taught to be leaders and to stand up for our beliefs.” Her leadership skills have helped Capitol Associates achieve many noteworthy accomplishments over the years. To name a few, Havens and her colleagues successfully promoted support for Medicare reimbursement for certified registered nurse anesthetists and nurse practitioners. They also successfully promoted the establishment of the National Institute for Nursing Research at the National Institutes of Health and the Center for Medical Rehabilitation and Research at the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. Havens also has a life beyond the Beltway. She and her husband, Arnie, with three children, have found time to stay connected with the School of Nursing. She talks regularly with Dean Jeanette Lancaster and some of her former teachers. “We continue to stay in touch,” Havens says. “They are an important part of the reason I believe in giving back.” Pursuing her Passions As a teenager in Nelson County, Virginia, Carolyn Lavecchia (BSN ’70) was passionate about the law, health care, and the University of Virginia. But she believed that she could never pursue two of her three interests. After all, few women attended law school at the time, and most of U.Va. was not yet open to female undergraduates. Nursing, however, was a distinct possibility. Although she knew she would have to start her nursing degree elsewhere, Lavecchia wanted to complete her education, including the clinical component, at the University. “I knew it would be an honor to get accepted into such a challenging program, but it became my goal,” says Lavecchia, whose singular focus over the years has enabled her to satisfy all three of her youthful passions. After graduating from Ferrum College and U.Va., earning her MSN, and working as a nurse and a nurse educator for twelve years, she was finally able to attend law school. Today she practices law in Richmond. Looking back on her years in the School of Nursing, Lavecchia says the experience exceeded her already-high expectations. She remembers instructors such as Ruth Moran. “She was such a good teacher that I believe I could still do a wet-to-dry dressing today as efficiently as I did when she was standing at my elbow.” “Most people who believe they or a family member are victims of medical malpractice just need somebody who can explain what happened and how to apply the appropriate laws. As a nurse and a lawyer, I am uniquely qualified to do that.” Carolyn Lavecchia 16 The Virginia Legacy WINTER 2005–06
72334_out.qxp 1/12/06 1:28 AM Page 18 After graduation Lavecchia worked in Virginia and Tennessee as a staff and head nurse, a public health nurse, a coordinator, and nurse practitioner. She also taught, first in the community family nursing graduate program at the University of Tennessee, and later, as co-director of the family nurse practitioner program at Virginia Commonwealth University’s Medical College of Virginia. When it came time to consider her next move—a doctorate in nursing or a JD degree—she decided to follow her childhood dream. She graduated from the University of Richmond law school in 1985. These days Lavecchia puts her nursing experience to work representing victims of elder abuse and medical malpractice as head of the elder abuse law team in the law firm of Williamson & Lavecchia, LC. She also represents health care providers accused of impropriety before health regulatory boards. A leader in numerous bar organizations, she received the Richmond Women’s Bar Association’s Women of Achievement Award in 2002. To her surprise she enjoys litigating, although she spends more time counseling clients on the merits of the cases they bring before her. “Most people who believe they or a family member are victims of medical malpractice just need somebody who can explain what happened and how to apply the appropriate laws,” she says. “As a nurse and a lawyer, I am uniquely qualified to do that.” Lavecchia, who participated in the 2004 Nursing Leadership Forum, attributes much of her career success to the School of Nursing. “I got my drive for excellence from U.Va.,” she says. “I knew from the beginning that a lot was expected of me. After excelling as a nursing student, I realized I could succeed in any pursuit I chose.” A number of other nursing alumni have gone on to use their nursing training as a successful foundation for work in some aspect of the legal profession. Here are a few: Erin C. Truban BSN 2000 Attorney, Carter & Coleman Linda J. Groves BSN 1977 and MSN and Adult NP 1980 Attorney/Senior Partner, Bingham McCutchen, LLP “My practice is not health care-related, but my ability to negotiate with a range of personalities and professionals, to deal with crises and manage transaction and people, is derived from my nursing education and practice.” “The focus of my litigation practice is defense of the long-term care industry… I am so proud of all the nurses who continue to work their long shifts, and care for the “impossible” patients, all the while being monumentally underappreciated. I am so grateful to the School of Nursing for having started the fire that still roars in me and which keeps me fighting for nurses every day.” Wendy Wolf MSN/PNP 1978 Attorney, Lashly & Baer, P.C. “I now defend hospitals, physicians, nurses, pharmaceutical companies, and other health care providers in medical malpractice cases. I also represent nurses in licensure matters and in state board investigations. … My formal education and practical nursing experience taught me to assert myself, to be an advocate, to be a careful observer, to analyze data and information, and to be a thoughtful and effective communicator, which are all essential skills in lawyering and in life!” Garland Locks Bigley Diploma 1967 Chief Judge, 11th Judicial District of Virginia, General District Courts, Supreme Court of Virginia Elected by the Legislature in 2001 "I draw on my nursing education every week on the bench, finding especially helpful my understanding of psychological (mental health) issues, as well as myriad health/medical issues that arise in testimony (e.g., injuries and illnesses; treatment and medication use; wound descriptions; and drug use issues)." Did we miss you? If you’ve pursued a career in law or policy, send your story to nursing-alumni@virginia.edu. The Virginia Legacy WINTER 2005–06 17
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ALUMNI AFFADAVITS - School of Nursing - University of Virginia

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