10 Spirit Summer 2020 Edition
PROTECTING THE COMMUNITY'S HEALTH
BY JOB VIGIL jvigil@nptelegraph.com
“When I was doing that rotation, there was a PHAN conference, the Public Health Association of Nebraska,” Vanderheiden said. “I was listening to her speak and I didn’t really know who she was. I went up to her and said, I truly have this new passion for public health that I didn’t even know existed.” Her original goal was to become a nurse practitioner, but Vanderheiden found out the director’s position at West Central District Health Department was opening. “I was asked to apply and I said, I’m really torn,” Vanderheiden said. “I can’t continue with nurse practitioner school and potentially take on this new job if I get it.”
A career in public health unexpectedly opened up for Shannon Vanderheiden, West Central District Health Department executive director, when she was doing a rotation as part of her continuing education. “I worked at (Great Plains Health) and then I worked at the Heart Institute and I actually decided to go back to school again,” Vanderheiden said. “I was in the nurse practitioner program and I had to do a rotation in public health.” Since she had been in health care for a number of years, she thought public health would be easy. Vanderheiden has an associate’s degree in nursing, a bachelor’s in nursing, a bachelor’s in organizational management and a master’s in public health. “I thought, of course I understand public health,” Vanderheiden said. “What I quickly discovered is I didn’t know anything about public health and I fell in love with it.”
Courtesy photo Shannon Vanderheiden
She said public health looks at the community as a whole.
Vanderheiden said the former director was a great mentor and is still a dear friend.
“They really look at population health and how do we protect and improve the health of everyone, not just a few,” Vanderheiden said. “So I truly fell in love with it during that rotation.” That took place in 2007. Vanderheiden met the then-director of WCDHD at a conference.
“I had no idea at the time when I was having conversation with her that once I was chosen as health director that she would be the person at the state level to sign off on me,” Vanderheiden said. “That shows how little I did know about public health in the state of Nebraska.”
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