Her Story
About Aleigha
Aleigha Owen is a healthcare administration professional with five and a half years of experience in skilled nursing and patient care operations. She began her career as a unit aide before becoming a Licensed Nursing Assistant and working overnights. She then advanced into roles involving transportation, scheduling, appointment scheduling, and medical records. Aleigha now serves as Business Office Manager, where she manages revenue generation, payment plans, Medicaid processes, and financial tracking to ensure the facility remains operational for residents requiring long-term care. A high school graduate, she originally pursued studies in animal science with plans for veterinary school before entering the healthcare field after having her daughter, driven by a post-COVID passion for supporting those in need.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Aleigha
01What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
You wouldn't take criticism from someone that you wouldn't also go to for advice. Because you're gonna get criticism. Especially from people that are probably feeling insecure when they feel when they're in a room with you, or just maybe they don't like you, because some people just will not like you, and it's not anything other than you're just you. But if you wouldn't go to that person for advice, don't take it to heart.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Don't ever feel like you don't belong in the room. There are rooms that you have yet to step foot in, and just tell yourself, I'm in the room. That's as big as the accomplishment. You know, I'm in the room. I'm here. And maybe it took a lot to get there, and maybe you feel like you don't match up to the people in that room. But you're in that room, also, and there's a reason for that.
03What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The challenges are the residents that you can tell need long-term care, and having those conversations with them and their families, and preparing their life in the community, or having residents that are coming in homeless, as well, and they don't even have a birth certificate, and you have to get Medicaid for them. Those are pretty challenging cases that require a lot of dedication. And then as far as my job, you know, I have to make sure that we're bringing in funds, so I have to find these funds, and make the calls, and make the manual statements, and really make sure that I'm keeping track of all the movement, so that we meet our goal each month, and able to stay open.
04What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
Integrity and compassion. I think that those two go hand in hand. You know, the ability to really put yourself in someone's shoes and empathize with them, but also remaining truthful, remaining transparent. I feel like that helps you have better relationships with your coworkers, better relationships with your friends and family, and keeping that level of compassion, which compassion fatigue is huge in healthcare, especially post-COVID, so I feel like even with your coworkers, that you're seeing that in them, and it's really important to still remind them of the why, why they chose healthcare, why they're here, and allow the people around you to have a solid person to go to that they know has integrity and compassion, and I feel like that inspires the rest of the team to show up as their best person.
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