WHERE SHE’S COMING FROM

Morrisette is from Scarborough, Maine, although she currently lives in Portland, Maine, working as an outpatient RN. She believes in doing what she can to make her community a better place and serve those around her, such as helping the local harm reduction community to develop a wound care program and also teaching English classes at the Immigrant Welcome Center.

MISTAKES WERE MADE (AND OVERCOME)

Morrisette is a perfectionist, so when she makes a mistake, it’s something that sticks with her—especially mistakes she makes as a nurse since the stakes are so high. She says, “My proudest nursing accomplishment is showing up to work the day after I made a mistake. I care deeply about people, and so I felt guilty for making such an easily avoidable mistake that affected a patient.” When her friends admit to mistakes in their non-medical careers, she sometimes wishes for a job with a lesser amount of responsibility, but, she says, “My friends will never know what it’s like to make a catch that will save someone’s life.”

ReTHINKING THE NURSE ROLE 

Despite being challenged by faculty in her undergraduate program to reconsider her perception that nursing is a hospital-based profession, Morrisette started her career working in a hospital—but that experience is what spurred her to realize her former teachers were right: she could use her skills and education elsewhere to keep people from getting to the point where they would need to be hospitalized. She says, “It’s what drove me to go back to school to be a Family Nurse Practitioner—and it’s what led me to Portland’s community sailing center, where I grew up sailing. While I was coaching there, I noticed many gaps in safety. I developed a training for coaches, created standardized incident reports, medical forms, etc. I now train coaches at multiple sailing centers in both sailing-relevant first aid as well as tackling topics like power dynamics, sexual harassment, and mental health.”