My name is Taylor Rali, and I’m the Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) for the Medical ICU at VUH. I have been in the CNS role for almost two years and was a bedside nurse in the MICU for 6 years prior. As a CNS, I am an advanced practice provider, and my work focuses on three spheres of influence, namely the patients, nurses and nursing practice, and the clinical enterprise. As a CNS, this allows me the unique opportunity to impact various facets of nursing practice and patient care. My work is focused on process improvement, quality improvement, and professional development of our staff to ultimately drive improvements in patient-centered care.
My favorite aspect of my job is that no two workdays may look alike. I spend a significant amount of time rounding on the unit with my nursing colleagues to ensure appropriate processes are in place to support our nurses, for safe and efficient patient care, and to help identify opportunities for improvement. I also have the privilege of utilizing my bedside nursing skills to help with direct patient care. I serve as a liaison between our MICU nurses and our hospital leadership. As such, I am involved with various quality improvement projects in our ICU and lead our bi-monthly multi-disciplinary collaborative initiative. I am also responsible for regular audits to ensure we are meeting various clinical benchmarks and participate in hospital wide initiatives to improve patient care.
My role as a CNS at a major academic medical center presents several unique opportunities. I am responsible for meeting quality benchmarks in an environment where members of the clinical team may come from different backgrounds and with varying amounts of clinical experience. Bringing such a multi-disciplinary team together for the shared goal of providing excellent patient care can be challenging but also very rewarding. My efforts to support our bedside nurses and help them succeed are the most rewarding and what I am proud of.
When not at work, I love to spend time with my family and friends. My husband, Aniket, and I have a beautiful 20-month-old daughter, Maya, and another baby on the way, as well as a sweet golden retriever, Leo. We spend a lot of time outside at the park, going to Nashville SC games, traveling, reading, and cooking.