Jessica Menard

Advanced Practice Clinician Manager of Care Delivery, Education, and Training, Commonwealth Care Alliance: Age 38

Jessica Menard

Jessica Menard started her nursing career in the emergency room and has worked in that setting for a number of area hospitals during her career.

Early in her training, she said, “I thought I wanted to do labor, delivery, and pediatrics, and then I did a rotation in the emergency room, and it turns out I loved it.”

But she didn’t take a narrow view of that work; she saw early on the “connecting dots,” as she put it, between the ER and home care, and the gaps in care many patients experience between the two.

In her current role with Commonwealth Care Alliance (CCA), Menard fills those gaps and helps patients navigate what can often be an overly complex, frustrating healthcare system.

“I started here as an advanced practice clinician. We take care of Medicaid patients, the chronically ill, the sickest of the sick. We have a unique model — we’re not just an insurer, but we also deliver care into the home and take care of whatever needs to be done: medical, behavioral health, socioeconomic stuff, housing. There are a lot of arms to it.”

Now in a management role, she still helps patients, but guides the professionals, too. She also actively mentors and precepts nurse practitioner and registered nurse students from UMass Amherst, Westfield State University, and American International College as they prepare to tackle this complicated world.

The Boston Globe honored Menard in 2021 with its Salute to Nurses Award, recognizing her contributions to nursing and patient care. In addition to her work at CCA, she has played a public-health role by educating people about critical health issues, including media interviews on topics such as Lyme disease and West Nile virus. She’s also a member of the Massachusetts Coalition of Nurse Practitioners, supporting legislative efforts to expand NP practice and improve healthcare delivery.

“It’s truly heartbreaking to see individuals suffer as they navigate this complex healthcare system,” she said. “If I can be the person that can help them get where they need to be and see their lives change for the better, health-wise — for example, getting diabetics who aren’t controlled to a spot where they’re better controlled and their quality of life is better — that’s so gratifying to me. It brings me a lot of gratitude when I see firsthand the difference we can make.”

—Joseph Bednar