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From Paralegal to 2022 Nursing Compassion Award Winner

04/11/2022

Tiffany Marshall grew up dreaming of becoming a nurse. As a child, she was always a “helper” and enjoyed making other people happy. But like so often happens, life got in the way and Tiffany put that dream on hold as an adult and began working as a paralegal to raise and support her family.

But her childhood dream never left her mind. One day she said to herself, “Let me just try.”  She took the placement test, and shortly after that she was accepted into nursing school. She poured herself into her studies, worked really hard, and earned her nursing degree – her childhood dream fulfilled!

Tiffany had many options as a fresh graduate. One of the most intriguing was an opportunity to work with the Arkansas State Hospital (ASH). Becoming a nurse was something that meant the world to Tiffany, and she was certain that she could make a difference in a different kind of way. After her interview, she knew that ASH was perfect for her. It was where she was meant to be.

She started her career at ASH as a floor nurse, but soon moved up to her current role as Medical Clinic Supervisor. In this position, Tiffany oversees on- and off-site appointments for her patients. But her duties don’t stop at care coordination. Tiffany is known to passionately advocate for patients with off-site doctors to ensure the best care is given. She even goes to appointments with patients if nurses from their units aren’t available to ensure her patients get the help they need.

Tiffany is aware of the serious stigma that is placed on patients coming from a psychiatric facility. She fights every day to break that stigma by reminding the doctors that care for her patients, “they are people just like you and me.” She fights for her patients and makes sure they receive the care they deserve, regardless of where they come from. She says doing that is just part of her job because they need a voice, and she can be that voice for them when they can’t.  

Those kinds of efforts are what led Tiffany’s supervisors and coworkers to nominate her for the 2022 Nursing Compassion Award. Over 150 nurses from across the state – from hospitals, clinics, and all other areas of medical practice – were nominated for the award. Tiffany was invited to the awards banquet as one of the top 20 candidates for the award across the state.

As the nominees were named and the Top 20 quickly became the Top 5, Tiffany had yet to hear her name called. Even though she had wanted to be a nurse for as long as she could remember, Tiffany never imagined she could become an award-winning nurse. She just wanted to help people, make them happy, and be a voice for those who needed her.

But as the banquet emcee announced, “And the 2022 Nursing Compassion Award goes to…,” Tiffany couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

Tiffany sat in shock and the crowd stood in applause while her children reassured her that her name had actually been called. She was the winner! Out of 150 amazing nurses from all over the state, Tiffany had won! She made her way to the podium and humbly accepted her award. In true Tiffany form, she made sure to thank everyone else – her staff, her coworkers, and her patients – saying that without them, “there would be no me. I wouldn’t be the same person.”

People and nurses like Tiffany are what make state facilities like the Arkansas State Hospital all that they are. Just as Tiffany said she wouldn’t be the same without her staff and her patients, it’s safe to say that Arkansas State Hospital and the Arkansas Department of Human Services wouldn’t be the same without her.

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