Respiratory Therapist Librado has been a cornerstone of Aveanna's National Clinical Education team from its inception. Going above and beyond to provide exceptional respiratory training, he truly embodies the Aveanna spirit. Librado is dedicated to sharing his knowledge to ensure our nurses feel prepared and empowered when they enter their patients' homes. We're honored to share some of his story and the heart behind his work.
How did you become a Respiratory Therapist?
I have been a respiratory therapist since 1999. When I moved to the Dallas/Fort Worth area, my first job was working at a hospital in the kitchen. Then I started working for a home care company as a driver. When I met their respiratory therapist and started working with her, I knew that's what I wanted to do. I found a school with night classes, and the rest is history.
The main thing I love about being a respiratory therapist is that I meet a lot of people, a lot of families and a lot of nurses. I get to interact with them in English and Spanish, answer their questions, or find answers if I don't already know.
How did you find Aveanna?
I was working at one of the children's hospitals here in Dallas, and they asked me to provide education to the families in Spanish, since I'm bilingual. That's how I got into education. From there, I was lucky enough to start working for Epic Health Services, which later merged with PSA Healthcare to become Aveanna Healthcare. I liked being able to support patients and families at home as well.
I was there from the very beginning of Aveanna's National Clinical Education department. I have learned a lot – how to research, prepare, and present materials. I've also found a great team. This group, we work together. We each have our own strengths, and we share them.
Why is clinical education so important?
In home care, many of our nurses are going to be in patients' homes by themselves. We have to make sure they have the proper training and know how to react in a challenging situation. We want our nurses to be 100% prepared and ready for whatever happens. We do a lot of research into best practices and keep our trainings updated with new information each year. Our educators are top-notch. At Aveanna, we want to be the best we can be.
What is your favorite thing about what you do?
I love training nurses and families. That's my ultimate goal – I want to make sure that they're ready when anything happens. I want to make sure that when our nurses talk to other nurses, they'll say, "I got trained at Aveanna. They took their time to give me the tools I need." I want to help them feel confident and prepared.
What does being a National Clinical Educator mean to you?
Being a National Clinical Educator means that I am able to share all my respiratory knowledge. This team has become an unstoppable force that can handle anything that needs to be done. We all work together as a team. Everybody brings their unique strengths to the team as a whole and passes that on to our field nurses.