Caroline Qualls

I'm a Family Nurse Practitioner located in Savannah, TN with nearly a decades experience as a registered nurse, and I have been an FNP for the last two years. I have worked in emergency/trauma/critical care settings and chronic/acute care nephrology, both as an RN and an FNP. 

FAMILY NURSE PRACTITIONER PRACTITIONER • THE KIDNEY EXPERTS • FEB 2024- PRESENT

PROVIDE PRIMARY CARE NEEDS FOR PATIENT WITH CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE, ACUTE KIDNEY INJURIES, CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE, HYPERTENSION, DIABETES, IGA NEPHROPATHY, RENAL CARCINOMA, POST-TRANSPLANT, OTHER RELATED CONDITIONS THAT CAN NEGATIVELY AFFECT RENAL FUNCTION. ORDER VARIOUS MEDICATIONS, PRIMARILY PERTAINING TO BLOOD PRESSURE AND HEART FAILURE CONTROL, DIAGNOSTIC TESTS SUCH AS RENAL ULTRASOUNDS AND BIOPSIES, AND INITIATION OF HEMODIALYSIS/PERITONEAL DIALYSIS. PROVIDE IN-HOSPITAL CARE FROM FLOOR TO THE INTENSIVE CARE UNITS AT JACKSON-MADISON COUTNY GENERAL HOSPITAL TO MANAGE CKD AND AKI PATIENTS THROUGH MEANS OF DIURETICS, FLUID REPLETION, CORRECT ACID-BASE AND ELECTROLYTE ABNORMALITIES, INITIATION OF HEMODIALYSIS, PLASMAPHERESIS FOR AUTOIMMUNE/RENAL DISORDERS, ETC. ROUND AT HEMODIALYSIS CLINICS FOR CONTINUED PRIMARY NEPHROLOGY CARE AS WELL AS ADJUST WEIGHTS BASED OFF FLUID STATUS, MONITOR FOR AND TREAT CALCIPHYLAXIS, MONITOR ELECTROLYTES AND HEMATOLOGIC STATUS. MANAGE ERYTHROPOETIN INJECTIONS, CALCITRIOL, VENOFER, ETC.

FAMILY NURSE PRACTITIONER • FAST PACE HEALTH • DEC 2022- FEB 2024

Assess, diagnose, and treat a high volume of patients as the sole provider in a rural, provider-shortage area urgent care. Evaluate vital signs, perform physical examinations, and order tests as needed based on assessment. Interpret labs and ECGs. Order appropriate treatments including medications. Perform appropriate procedures such as suturing, stapling, and foreign body removals. Perform pediatric child protective services, well-child, sports, and school physical exams. Make referrals as needed. Begin appropriate long-term care for continued monitoring by primary care provider. Perform and review Patient Health Questionnaire-9 and General Anxiety Disorder-7 on all adult-age patients and treat as necessary. Supervise and guide support staff including medical assistants, radiology technicians, licensed practical nurses, registered nurses, and emergency medical technicians. Respond appropriately to emergent patient conditions such as cardiac arrythmias, hypotension, hypoxemia, suspected strokes/transischemic attacks, suspected myocardial infarctions, delirium tremens/acute alcohol withdrawal, suicidal ideations/post-suicide attempts, cardiac arrests, traumatic injuries/amputations, et cetera, and intervene as necessary until transported to higher level of care. Collaborate with supervising physician. Acute treatment of those with various comorbidities such as diabetes, cardiac disease, kidney disease, pulmonary disease, neurologic conditions, mental illnesses, polypharmacy patients, and more. Manage workman’s compensation injuries. Educate patients as individually needed. 

ACUTE CARE HEMODIALYSIS REGISTERED NURSE • NORTH ALABAMA MEDICAL CENTER • JULY 2021-DEC 2022

Perform hemodialysis to both acute kidney injury patients as well as chronic hemodialysis patients admitted into the hospital in the intensive care unit as well as the dialysis unit. Access VasCaths, central venous catheters, and arteriovenous fistulas and grafts. Monitor and troubleshoot complications with accesses. Administer medications. Determine appropriate fluid removal for patients based on physical assessment, vital signs, and patient stability. Initiate new dialysis treatments safely to prevent common complications such as hypotension, muscle cramping, and more. Monitor critical patients during treatment and intervene for serious and life-threatening dialysis-related complications such as hypotension, seizures, cardiac arrhythmias, and cardiopulmonary arrest. Work closely with providers to assess patient-specific needs. Provide appropriate teachings about fluid intake, foods to avoid, and reading food labels.

EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT RN • HARDIN MEDICAL CENTER • DEC 2020- APRIL 2022

Provide emergency care to a rural ED. Perform triage, assessment, recognition of emergent conditions, delegating necessary tasks to appropriate personnel, appropriately monitor patient response to interventions and treatments, promptly voice and address concerns. Common skills performed include intravenous access with ultrasound guidance if needed, assistance with central venous catheter placement, assistance with chest tube placement, naso- and orogastric tube placement, urinary catheter placement, ECG and interpretation, wound care, assistance with suturing and stapling, assistance with nerve blocks, conscious sedation for procedures, administration of medications needed for rapid sequence intubation and others outlined in ACLS protocols, managing and titrating multiple critical medications, emergent care of neonatals, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and more.

HEMODIALYSIS RN • FRESENIUS KIDNEY CARE • JUNE 2019-DEC 2020

Manage chronic hemodialysis patients during their three-day a week treatment schedules. Roles included assessment to determine stability pre- and post-treatment, managing and determining amount of ultrafiltration, evaluating and entering settings based on electrolyte levels, changing settings to best dialyze patient such as blood flow rates, evaluating and accessing arteriovenous fistulas and grafts as well as central venous catheters, rescheduling patients for missed treatments, discussing patient conditions with providers about extra treatments, time changes and blood flow rate changes, infection control for patients with infectious diseases, delegating tasks and overseeing the practice of licensed practical nurses and certified chronic hemodialysis technicians, administering medications, inventory and stock, monitoring machines and system operations, managing emergent situations such as hypotension, arrhythmias, loss of consciousness, seizures, and cardiopulmonary arrests, transporting to emergency department when needed, and more. Provide appropriate teachings about fluid intake, foods to avoid, and reading food labels.

HEMODIALYSIS CHARGE RN • DAVITA • AUG 2018- JUNE 2019

Manage chronic hemodialysis patients during their three-day a week treatment schedules. Roles included assessment to determine stability pre- and post-treatment, managing and determining amount of ultrafiltration, evaluating and entering settings based on electrolyte levels, changing settings to best dialyze patient such as blood flow rates, evaluating and accessing arteriovenous fistulas and grafts as well as central venous catheters, rescheduling patients for missed treatments, discussing patient conditions with providers about extra treatments, time changes and blood flow rate changes, infection control for patients with infectious diseases, delegating tasks and overseeing the practice of licensed practical nurses and certified chronic hemodialysis technicians, administering medications, monitoring machines and system operations, managing emergent situations such as hypotension, arrhythmias, loss of consciousness, seizures, and cardiopulmonary arrests, transporting to emergency department when needed, and more. Provide appropriate teachings about fluid intake, foods to avoid, and reading food labels.

EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT RN • MAGNOLIA REGIONAL HEALTH CENTER •OCT 2016- MAR 2017

Provide emergency care to a rural ED. Perform triage, assessment, recognition of emergent conditions, delegating necessary tasks to appropriate personnel, appropriately monitor patient response to interventions and treatments, promptly voice and address concerns. Common skills performed include intravenous access and with ultrasound guidance if needed, assistance with central venous catheter placement, assistance with chest tube placement, naso- and orogastric tube placement, urinary catheter placement, ECG and interpretation, wound care, assistance with suturing and stapling, assistance with nerve blocks, conscious sedation for procedures, administration of medications needed for rapid sequence intubation and others outlined in ACLS protocols, managing and titrating multiple critical medications, emergent care of neonatals, ventilator management, and more.

EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT RN • JACKSON-MADISON COUNTY GENERAL HOSPITAL • NOV 2015- AUG 2018

Provide care to ED seeing 100,000+ patients a year. Perform triage, assessment, recognition of emergent conditions, delegating necessary tasks to appropriate personnel, appropriately monitor patient response to interventions and treatments, promptly voice and address concerns. Common skills performed include intravenous access and with ultrasound guidance if needed, assistance with central venous catheter placement, assistance with chest tube placement, naso- and orogastric tube placement, urinary catheter placement, ECG and interpretation, wound care, assistance with suturing and stapling, assistance with nerve blocks, conscious sedation for procedures, administration of medications needed for rapid sequence intubation and others outlined in ACLS protocols, managing and titrating multiple critical medications, emergent care of neonatals, ventilator management, assistance and management of Burr holes and emergent thoracotomies, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and more.

Family Nurse Practitioner, University of North Alabama c/o 2022, Magna Cum Laude

Bachelor of Science in Nursing, University of Tennessee- Knoxville c/o 2017, Magna Cum Laude

Associate of Applied Science- Registered Nurse, Jackson State Community College c/o 2015