Regional One Health Nurse Manager Joselyn Freeman-Singleton is the Tennessee Hospital Association’s 2021 Nurse Leader of Distinction.

This prestigious award honors Joselyn’s commitment to helping Regional One Health establish new service lines while continuing to lead a team that provides essential care to the community.

Joselyn brings a unique mix of clinical and operational experience to her role, and looks forward to continuing to be a leader at Regional One Health in the years to come.

Regional One Health Nurse Manager Joselyn Freeman-Singleton is being recognized with a 2021 Tennessee Hospital Association Award of Excellence, highlighting her proactive leadership and passion for learning and teaching new skills to benefit our patients.

THA President and CEO Wendy Long, MD said the 2021 awards are especially poignant given the challenges the health care community has faced.

“During an unparalleled year for our industry, the outstanding contributions of hospital and healthcare leaders were both a barometer and beacon of the incredible work of all those who have served and fought to save lives in the most remarkable of times,” she said. “THA’s 2021 Awards of Excellence winners have endured, rising to meet unimaginable challenges.”

Freeman-Singleton received the Nurse Leader of Distinction Award, which recognizes the contributions of registered nurses at THA-member hospitals.

As Regional One Health Senior Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer Linda Hughlett noted, “Joselyn is a go-to person when projects require a proactive leader with a unique blend of clinical and operational expertise. We regularly look to Joselyn when we are executing initiatives that are crucial to the patient care mission, and she never fails to go above and beyond.”

Joselyn Freeman-Singleton was honored as Nurse Leader of Distinction at the 2021 Tennessee Hospital Association Awards of Excellence program.

Freeman-Singleton recently led a pair of important projects at Regional One Health: a medical oncology program to administer chemotherapy and other cancer therapies and a new unit for patients from a federal detention center in Mississippi.

In the past, patients diagnosed with cancer had to be referred outside Regional One Health, so establishing an in-house oncology service was seen as a way to enhance patient care and make quality cancer treatment more readily accessible in the community.

Freeman-Singleton identified and navigated external sources of expertise and then educated internal staff on processes, procedures and treatments. She made sure her entire team trained on administering chemotherapy so patients would have consistent care regardless of which nurses were on duty.

Regional One Health was able to ramp up the service even more quickly than expected, and the nursing care Freeman-Singleton established has received excellent reviews from physicians and patients.

Freeman-Singleton also stepped up when federal corrections officials asked Regional One Health to develop a unit to provide inpatient care for inmates from a facility in Mississippi.

The project raised challenges. The patient population would need to be housed separately, the nursing team would need to treat a wide variety of issues, and security measures would need to be in place in accordance with detention center guidelines.

Freeman-Singleton worked with other stakeholders to create a successful unit that meets those obligations and fulfills Regional One Health’s core purpose of providing medical care to patients in need.

“Joselyn is never one to seek credit, but always one who deserves to be elevated,” says Chief Nursing Office Linda Hughlett.

Even as Freeman-Singleton took the lead on new challenges, Hughlett said, she remained a steady, positive presence for her team members and colleagues.

“She is a positive force in the day-to-day operations our community relies upon. Joselyn has high expectations for the nurses she oversees, and she helps them succeed by communicating clearly, creating a platform to share ideas and concerns, and setting an example by never asking her team to do work she doesn’t do herself,” she said.

Freeman-Singleton’s team has one of the lowest turnover rates within Regional One Health, and she has improved the partnership between the nursing staff and the house supervisor. When new nursing leaders join Regional One Health, Freeman-Singleton is among the first people to reach out to help them acclimate and to offer her mentorship.

“Joselyn continues to embrace new professional development opportunities and we continue to offer her chances to stretch her wings, she always rises to the challenge,” Hughlett said. “Through it all, Joselyn is never one to seek credit, but always one who deserves to be elevated.”

Freeman-Singleton’s dedication to her career comes from the heart.

She was drawn to nursing early in life, after her father suffered an accidental electrical burn at work. Freeman-Singleton recalls visiting him at the hospital when she was just 7 or 8 years old and being inspired by the kindness he was shown by his nurses.

Since then, her passion for the career has only grown, driving her to earn her Master of Science in Nursing, volunteer her time for a variety of professional organizations, and always remain laser-focused on patient and family centered care.