“I am sure that my nominee has been recognized before, and I am still going to nominate Natasha Ellwood for Exemplary Care.
I get to work with some of the best people here at the Rifle clinic. From the medical providers to dental and even our beloved behavioral health providers, I am constantly counting my blessings and expressing my gratitude for the team I get to work along side. I’d like to especially recognize Natasha because of several reasons. Natasha is a pleasure to work with. She is consistent in her mood and demeanor, always humble and kind to her teammates and to her patients. Natasha never expects or demands, rather she expresses her thoughts and feelings in the most appropriate manner, always putting patient care first and foremost. Natasha has internal ego strength that she may not even rightly acknowledge. Natasha has taken on the vast majority of our MAT patients and recently met with a patient that is pretty complicated… fresh out of corrections, very manipulative with strong habituated criminogenic behaviors. This patient has several health consequences due mainly to his addiction to heroin and other drugs. Using her intuition, wisdom, and intelligence, Natasha was able to help this patient by providing really good healthcare. The patient presents as very high risk for overdose death. Natasha could have done several things like, not agreeing to see him for MAT due to his complications, she could have judged him as “bad” but, she instead made all the right medical decisions, dealt with his addiction, set healthy boundaries (which is a must for this type of patient) and may have saved him from eminent overdose by making sure she was in control of the medication that will prevent his overdose. Natasha’s dedication to her patients is an inspiration to me to do better. I could tell many patient stories where I have found Natasha providing exemplary care, this is what she does each and every day she comes to work. I am proud of Natasha and even prouder to be able to work along side her and call her a friend and colleague.
Natasha has been a pleasure to work with and has taken on each new challenge we tossed at her. I will miss her dearly, and the Front Range is lucky to have her back.” –Oyen Hoffman
Behavioral Health Provider