Brittney Preslar, certified Nurse Practitioner in Family Medicine, has joined the clinical care team of Northern Family Medicine – a department of Northern Regional Hospital.
Preslar, a native of Mount Airy, is pleased to be taking care of patients in her hometown community.
“I was born and raised in Mount Airy, and it’s always a pleasant reunion when my patients know me because we grew up together or because they know my parents,” she said. “If they’re friends with my parents, they usually tell me stories about myself when I was a little girl,” she said with a laugh.
For the most part, 32-year-old Preslar has always known she wanted to be a nurse; but her commitment to nursing as a professional goal was fine-tuned when she began caring for her grandmother, who suffered from COPD during the last years of her life. “During my senior year of high school, I moved in with my grandmother to help tend to her growing physical needs,” she said. That hands-on experience helped shape her understanding of direct patient care and also gave her a keen appreciation for the importance of the role of at-home caretakers – who, she believes, are unsung heroes of any healthcare team.
As a family nurse practitioner, Preslar is responsible for evaluating, diagnosing and treating patients with a wide variety of common and chronic physical ailments, including hypertension, high cholesterol, kidney stones, urinary tract infections, bronchitis, diabetes, and others. “I try to be holistic with my patients because I want to find the root of the problem and not just prescribe medications,” she said. “I carefully review their records to see where they’ve been clinically, where they are now, and where they want to be.”
Preslar spends time educating her patients about their conditions, as well as recommending lifestyle alternatives to further improve their health. She said she also provides hugs, as needed – especially for those who may be experiencing bouts of anxiety or depression. According to mental health experts, the COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to an increased incidence of mental health problems.
As a benefit to Northern Family Medicine patients, Preslar appreciates that a fully staffed laboratory and radiology suite are in the same building. “Such convenient access to these important clinical services enhances our diagnostic efficiency and improves patient compliance,” she said.
Preslar’s career trajectory, as well as her management skills, were strengthened while she worked as the clinical administrator for an outpatient cardiology practice in Winston-Salem. As she rose rapidly through the management ranks at Novant Health Cardiology, she realized that a career as a healthcare administrator was not for her. “I did a lot of paperwork and attended meetings, but had no interaction with patients,” she recalled. “That experience was a turning point for me because, once I realized it was not what I wanted to do for the next 40 years, I decided to go back to school.”
While pursuing her advanced educational programs to become a fully certified Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP-C), Preslar worked part-time as a Registered Nurse in a variety of clinical settings at a number of locally based healthcare providers. She honed her clinical and critical-thinking skills while working in the busy Emergency Departments of three hospitals, including Wake Forest Medical Center and Northern Regional Hospital. “You definitely learn to think on your toes while seeing a wide range of clinical conditions in an emergency setting,” she said. Those foundational skills also proved valuable in her role as a preceptor and mentor to nursing students enrolled in Surry Community College.
When not helping her patients, Preslar enjoys spending time with her family, which includes her husband, Jason, a furniture salesman; and Finn, their energetic 5-year-old son who, she said, “just started kindergarten … and loves it.” Her son also loves the newest additions to their family – cows. “My husband just got some cows, and Finn enjoys being outside with them and his dad.”
To schedule an appointment with Brittney Preslar, FNP-C, please call Northern Family Medicine at 336-786-4133. The practice is located at 280 North Pointe Boulevard, Mount Airy, North Carolina 27030, just inside the Northern Wellness and Fitness Center.
Source: https://www.mtairynews.com