Tollefson adjusting nicely in new P.C. Nurse position

Malta's Jenny Tollefson took over the Phillips County Health Nurse position vacated by longtime County Nurse Mary Lou Broadbrooks in late-November and though it is different from any medical position she has had in the past, she feels like things are moving along nicely.

"It is going great, but there is a lot to learn," Tollefson said. "I've never had a nursing job that is anything like public nursing so I'm not used to it. There is definitely a big learning curve, but it is going well."

One aspect of the transition which has helped Tollefson ease into the new position is that Broadbrooks was on-hand for the first six weeks to add her expertise and answer any question which arose.

"That was great," Tollefson said. "Her clients all love her and she was very helpful in allowing me to get my feet wet. She is still helpful. We talk almost every day. This job has such a variety of services that we do and there are things that didn't come up while we were training. So I still have a lot of questions and she is always there for me."

The job of county nurse requires Tollefson to wear many hats in the community. From giving immunizations to going into schools and doing vision screenings, hearing screenings and checking students for lice, there are no shortage of tasks to complete as the County Nurse. When not meeting the immediate demands of health care on a daily basis, Tollefson also sits on a slew of boards throughout the county including the Phillips Transit Authority and the Aging Council boards.

"We are also doing a support group seminar for the next six weeks which I am a part of," Tollefson said. "I will be doing part three which will cover chronic illness and support portion."

Tollefson has both professional and personal experience with chronic illness – prior to the County Nurse position, her jobs had all revolved around oncology -- and it was early on while she was attending college that she decided nursing would be the career path she would follow.

"I have had very close family members that have had health issues, mainly cancer," Tollefson said. "And I was also a CNA while I was attending college. I always thought I couldn't handle being a nurse, but after being a CNA I decided that being a nurse was something I would like to do."

Tollefson graduated from Montana State in Bozeman with a degree in nursing in 2004 and has been an RN ever since. Tollefson is the wife of Malta's R.J. Tollefson and the couple has two children – sons Jace, five, and Jaxson, who is three – with another child on the way, a little girl who is due for arrival in late April.

Tollefson grew up in Gildford, Mont., -- 30-miles west of Havre – and is a 1999 graduate of Kremlin-Gildford High School (which closed its doors in 2006 and merged with two other schools and is now North Star High School.) R.J. and Jenny moved back to Malta, where R.J. was born and raised, in the Spring of 2013.

Though the new position as County Health Nurse is a demanding one, Tollefson said she enjoys how much interaction with the community she is afforded on a daily basis, even if it was foreign at first.

"I feel really connected with the community now," she said. "I am used to just clocking-in, taking care of my patients and then going home. Here, I am out in the community and it is a great thing."

While Tollefson has Broadbrooks to lean on for support with the new job, she also has two other people who have been helpful in seeing her through the early transition period.

"The two girls here in the office, Tasha Hines and Kayla Young, have been extremely helpful to me in this time of transition," Tollefson said. "And then the people in the community have been very friendly and welcoming."