Karen K. Bodie
Karen Bodie is a Licensed Practical Nurse(LPN), with over 28 years of experience in healthcare. After obtaining her LPN license in April 1997., she was hired at home health nursing service agencies. These job positions employed her as an LPN Independent Contractor, where she self promoted her business: Special Kay Enterprise INC. She achieved two awards from one of the agencies: LPN of the year in 2001 and Employee of the year in 2002. Throughout her career, she has worked across diverse healthcare settings, which includes home health staffing, on call nursing positions, assisted living facilities, nursing homes and now, behavioral health. Her current role as a Licensed Practical Nurse(LPN), employs her to provide supervisory, hands-on care, to individuals with mental and physical disabilities at a 24-bed facility, that resembles a small village environment. At this facility type community, a typical workday for her and coworkers, would be to offer comprehensive direct care to 24 mentally and or physically challenged individuals, ensuring their well-being through medication and treatment management, appointments, and preparation for medical procdures. Throughout the day, the nurse inteacts with residents and staff, manage medical emergencies when necessary, through the assistance of the 911 emergency medical system. Moreover, enters clinical data in the electronic health record and medical charts. Communicates residents' health details to physicians, then physicians orders to pharmacists. To elaborate more on the chain of communication, communicates to facility managers, corporate management, allied services, clinical support team members, and documented family members or court appointed guardians.
In addition to her hands-on clinical expertise, as previously mention, Karen has held supervisory and administrative responsibilities, balancing patient care with leadership and team management. She has extensive experience caring for pediatrics, seniors, geriatrics, and respiratory patients, and her background reflects a commitment to promoting quality care in all aspects of nursing. She is recognized for her dedication, compassion, and ability to mentor and guide other healthcare professionals.
Karen is currently enrolled in a Registered Health Information Technology (RHIT), Associates of Science Degree program , at Santa Fe College, where she has already achieved multiple certifications, such as, International Studies Certificate with Alumni status in the year 2020, and Associates of Arts degree in the year 2021. Ms. Bodie was excited to share that, she became a Certified Data Analytics Management Specialist in 2024, and most recently,Certified Coding Associate (CCA), during the end of this year's college summer semester, 2025.. In the current RHIT enrollment, she has developed a broad understanding of medical billing, coding, health information management, and clinical documentation. She finds the administrative and coding aspects of healthcare fascinating and is focused on using this knowledge to enhance patient care while preparing for a transition into hospital administration. Karen plans to apply her coding expertise initially in an outpatient setting, with the goal of integrating administrative skills and clinical knowledge to advance healthcare operations.
Committed to lifelong learning and professional growth, Karen stays current with medical advancements and is passionate about combining clinical practice with emerging healthcare technologies. She values independence and autonomy, family involvement in patient care, and delivering personalized care that empowers patients to achieve their best health outcomes. Looking forward, Karen aspires to return to a hospital setting before retirement, continuing her dual focus on patient care and healthcare administration.
• Licensed Practical Nurse
• Marion Technical College
- Certificate of Completion, Medical Assistant
• Santa Fe College International Studies Alumni - 2020
• American Health Information Management Association
• Children's Medical Services
What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to, first, having the desire to care for a loved one, who is no longer with us. Second, being honestly realistic and self-motivated, to become the best that I can be at all levels. Third, I ensure that I maintain self-discipline, respectful, being open-minded, aware, accountable,trustworthy, and reliable.
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I've received is to continue my career path. In addition, I should move forward and obtain a business administration degree. I agree very much with this advice because it aligns perfectly with my healthcare career interests.
What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would advise young women to learn how to adapt in the work environment. Become engage in your patient's care and know that learning is a lifelong ongoing process. Stay openminded with others, respect personal space, focus your need to build a healthy well-balanced lifestyle. Although it may seem impossible, make time to rejuvenate both mentally and physically. Ensure tht you find leisure time to relax, meditate, socialize, Remember this infamous quote from Karen " If your desired path to shine in life becomes hindered, remember to live the lifestyle that glows, even in darkness , until you find you shine."
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What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The biggest challenge I am faced with is staying financially secured to maintain my educational goals, career advancement, and well-being. Healthcare opportunities to improve my career have always been open to me, I need to find ways to achieve them, that's where I am often challenged. On the other hand, although we have made great progress in the healthcare environment, we are still challenge with episodes of poor communication, lack of good time management, clinical inefficiency and ineffectiveness. Sometimes we are winners among our challenges and there's times when our hard work is not enough and we become loosers to our efforts. For example, I've found that a day of nursing care can become very difficult to maintain time management when there's inadequate staffing. Aother example, working with lindividuals who practice poor communication skils, which, if not caught and corrected through excellent teamwork practices, leads to a chain reaction of medical errors in patient care. I practice teamwork in my workenvironment and personal growth. Why? It is because I am motivated to evolve from negative experiences into positive outcomes.
What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
In my personal life, I value experiences that bring joy, promotes healthy lifestyle living, longevity, and broaden my perspective. I especially enjoy traveling and desires going on world cruises, which will allow me to explore new places and create lasting memories. When at work, Karen value teamwork, quality patient care, and more importantly, patient satisfaction.
Locations
Special Kay Enterprise INC.
Ocala, FL 34481