Middlesex Community College: MCC's Alumni Webinar Supports Frontline Healthcare Workers

Press release from the Middlesex Community College:

Caitlin Buckley

5/20/2021

Throughout Middlesex Community College’s 50th year anniversary, the college has provided a variety of online commemorative events and celebrations to honor its over 26,000 alumni. In February, Middlesex’s Alumni Association held an online presentation aimed at helping healthcare workers deal with the stress and trauma of working on the frontlines of COVID-19.

Susan Lavallee – an MCC nursing alumna and current faculty member – helped to organize the event by bringing in presenter Tom Greenhalgh. A retired police lieutenant from Billerica, Greenhalgh has been working with first responders on stress management for 20 years.

In his presentation for the Alumni Association, Greenhalgh discussed coping strategies for healthcare workers suffering from burnout, exhaustion and post-traumatic stress disorder due to their work through the pandemic. The event provided participants with valuable information on how healthcare workers can take care of themselves, according to Lavallee.

“Healthcare workers can learn and understand that the way they are feeling is not abnormal,” Lavallee said. “They are essentially normal people responding to abnormal circumstances. Tom taught them about self-care, how to support one another, and how to – in some circumstances – come out stronger in the end.”

The free event – which was open to the public – came about because Lavallee saw a need based on her own experiences in the field and from the data coming out about the effects the pandemic was having on frontline workers. From these factors, she understood the relevance and importance that this type of support could have on healthcare workers’ long term success.

“I’m thrilled that we have this vehicle to be able to offer this – not only to our alums because we care about them so much and they matter – but also their peers out there in the healthcare field,” she said. “There’s a lot of information that people need, including how to stay well and take care of one another.”

Lavallee graduated from MCC in 1988 as a first generation student. Having gotten her start as a Nursing Assistant, she was encouraged by coworkers to go to school to become a nurse. Middlesex offered her an affordable opportunity.

After starting as an Emergency Nurse right after graduation, Lavallee went on to become the Director of Emergency Services and received both bachelor’s and master’s degrees. She is now a professor in MCC’s nursing program.

“I’ve come full circle to be teaching here,” she said. “There’s no greater sense of satisfaction than to give back to the place that offered me such incredible opportunity.”

She tells her students that they are “forever family” and emphasizes the importance of staying connected to the Middlesex community. Joining the Alumni Association – and participating in events like these – allows the students to give back to the place where they got their start.

“I encourage – at this 50th anniversary – as many alums to get involved as possible,” she said. “Not only to continue maintaining that contact with their peers, but to have the opportunity to help future students choose MCC and support one another as they continue into their careers.”

MCC is celebrating 50 years! If you have ever taken a class at MCC, you are an alum! To share your story – and join in on the 50th anniversary celebrations – contact Amy Lee, Director of Annual Giving and Alumni Relations, at 978-656-3028 or leea@middlesex.mass.edu. Visit www.middlesex.mass.edu/alumni/ for more information and to join the Alumni Association.

MCC’s Nursing & Allied Health Division prepares students to go into exciting and rewarding careers, as well as to transfer to four-year colleges and universities. Students learn the knowledge and skills they need to help people, including practical and clinical hands-on experiences.

Visit https://www.middlesex.mass.edu/healthcareersdiv/ for more information about the Nursing, Dental Programs, Diagnostic Medical Sonography, Medical Assisting, Medical Lab Technician and Radiologic Technology programs at Middlesex.

Discover your path at Middlesex Community College. As one of the largest, most comprehensive community colleges in Massachusetts, MCC has been a proven leader in online education for more than 20 years. We educate, engage and empower a diverse community of learners, offering more than 80 degree and certificate programs – plus hundreds of noncredit courses. Middlesex Community College: Student success starts here!

This press release was produced by the Middlesex Community College. The views expressed here are the author’s own.