NCAP work ‘hit the trifecta of all the ways I wanted to help’
Zechariah Thompson, M.S.N., R.N., CCRN, has attained the highest Nursing Career Advancement Program level and is working his dream job at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas – just six years and six months into his nursing career.
Only one other nurse at the hospital, Samantha Doup, M.S.N., B.S.N., R.N., NHSM, RNC-NIC, C-NPT, C-ELBW, has an NCAP Level VI, the “Virtuoso” level. “The Level VI nurse functions as a role model for nursing professionalism within the hospital and within the community,” says the description on the MyTexasHealth NCAP page, which also includes information about how to participate.
“This highlights the many ways our bedside nurses go above and beyond to provide exceptional care to our patients,” said Nikita Preston, B.S.N., R.N., a Texas Health Dallas nurse manager and leadership representative on the hospital’s NCAP committee.
Thompson leads the hospital’s Emergency Response Team. He said the position and his NCAP work “hit the trifecta of all the ways I wanted to help. Being able to help people is at the core of my being.” Besides helping his patients, Thompson volunteers in the community because of NCAP and teaches at Texas Woman’s University.
“Zech is an exceptional nurse, but he brings so much more to Texas Health,” said Joseph Brookshire, M.S.N., R.N., CNL, nurse manager for innovation/clinical outcomes/float pool, Texas Health Dallas. “For example, he took it upon himself to write new team member handbooks for two different areas: ‘How To Be a Mentor’ for our nurse internship program and an ‘Emergency Response Team Handbook’ for our new R.N.s.”
More about Thompson:
What did you want to be as a kid, and how did you ultimately choose your career?
As a kid in California, I really didn’t know what I wanted to do when I grew up. My mom was a nurse practitioner. Her best friend was a nurse. And my grandmother is a nurse who, at 91, is still doing home health visits.
As an adult, I still really don’t know what I want to be! For me, it’s always what’s next. All the things I’ve done at Texas Health are so rewarding. This job I’m in was my dream job when I started my nursing career.
I also teach at Texas Woman’s University, where I got my bachelor’s in nursing in 2017 and my master’s in 2021. I teach two courses there now: critical care and an adult general medical-surgical course.
What is your workday like?
I collaborate with the nursing administrative supervisors on how the inpatient floors are looking and then see the sickest patients in the hospital. My workday includes seeing the patients when they are out of the intensive care unit and on their road to recovery. But I am also in charge of medical emergency activations, from rapid responses to Code Blues, collaborating with different clinicians for seamless delivery of care.
What is your favorite part of your job, and the biggest challenge?
My job has a lot of uplifting moments when, as a team, we prevent health declines in our patients. I like when I can talk with staff about their patients and help with education or communication. I like being able to make a difference in the lives of both the patient and the staff.
It can be challenging to have very experienced nurses ask for my opinions on patients. What helped me overcome this fear was completing my Level VI and listing all that I have achieved.
What’s something people would be surprised to know about you?
I am on the Farmers Branch library board. Volunteering is part of the NCAP Level VI. You’re out in the community stretching your nursing license, showing that ‘Yes, I’m a nurse and I’m doing this.’ It makes you so well-rounded.
How do you do your life’s best work at Texas Health?
NCAP is something I’ve always wanted to do. It’s really fascinating to me with the different challenges. For example, I gave a one-hour speech on continuing nursing education to a group of nurses. I really try to encourage people to do it and tell them that if they need help, they can always reach out to me. Teaching other nurses and preparing nursing students for the next generation is how we strengthen nursing as a profession.
