Talking Healthcare in Tennessee with Nurse Manager - Shannon Beckett

The picture was taken last November (2025) for a shoulder surgery. I'm doing great now!

Let's talk healthcare just a bit on this fine Saturday! Recently, I had the wonderful opportunity to chat with Shannon Beckett, the Nurse Manager for cardiovascular surgery at a level one trauma center for Ballad Health. Both Shannon and myself have had recent surgeries and have witnessed our healthcare system evolve. Shannon, however, sees this on a daily basis in her role within the system. It was so great to hear the firsthand stories about her daily interactions with patients, medical professionals, and the business as a whole. I went into our meeting knowing that we need change within our healthcare system. I left the meeting with more urgency. The struggles people are faced with right now are so real. Having to choose between groceries or life-saving medicine. Struggling to find funds for gas just to acquire the medicine. Point being, everything is interconnected. If the entire tide rises at once, it's a flood. This is unfortunately happening right now. We need to take serious looks at each aspect that impacts pricing on the people. We have to control these costs, or we won't have the ability to consume anything but our basic necessities (and sometimes not even those). I really appreciated Shannon chatting with me and the perspective she brought to our conversation!