Staff Spotlight: Lindsay Berndahl

NWWC Staff Spotlight

Name: Lindsay Berndahl

Role: Nocturnal Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA)

Joined NWWC: October 2018

Personal Life: Lindsay is a Washington native. She is grateful to have all of her extended family in the state for lots of fun family memories. She has a very sweet dog-son, Dexter, who thinks he is human. J She spends her free time enjoying life with her friends, family, and boyfriend.

Life Before NWWC: Before joining NWWC, Lindsay worked as a patient care technician on the cardiology and intensive care unit floors at a busy urban hospital. She transitioned to health unit coordinator and monitor technician roles. She has worked in a variety of settings including inpatient, outpatient, telemetry, neurology, intensive care unit, adult family homes, and private in-home care. She also cared for her grandma in the last years of her life.

A Day in Her Job: As a nocturnal CNA, Lindsay works with patients overnight while they are recovering from surgery. She measures vital signs, assists patients with moving, helps with pain management, and provides emotional support. At night, Lindsay and a nurse manage care for all of the patients in the surgery center so it’s essential that they work well as a team. Each patient is extremely different. Lindsay prides herself on being able to read individuals and meet them on their level. During her night shifts, she tries to pick up any “puzzle pieces” that may linger from the day and assembles them to provide the next shift with all of the information they need to provide the best patient care. When she works day shifts, she helps with admitting patients to the surgery center, turnover of the operating rooms, and discharging patients to home.

What Else to Know about Lindsay:

• The summer of 2005 served as a catalyst in Lindsay’s decision to pursue a job in healthcare. Until then, her main experience with hospitals was for her sister with diabetes. In a crazy turn of events, Lindsay became the patient after being a victim of a random drive by shooting. Three weeks later, her father passed away suddenly and unexpectedly from a heart attack. This was the tipping point that drove her to her healthcare career. “As many of us can attest to, it seems like medicine sought me out and I love it to this day.”
• It is fitting that we are spotlighting Lindsay during the month of her favorite holiday: Halloween! She has thrown many elaborate Halloween house parties over the years.
• She loves friends, family, laughing, music, tattoos, and the outdoors! “I love to laugh and spend as much time as possible with those who I can make laugh in return.” She enjoys camping in the summer and spending time near the water. Her “pseudo-nieces” are the loves of her life. “Watching them develop their own strong, vibrant personalities has been so special.”