Kelsey Davis’s enthusiasm for being a nurse at Journey’s 128-bed Stanford Crossing, Ky., skilled nursing facility (SNF) melts the distance of a phone interview to nothing at all. Her open love for her job makes it seem almost as if she won enough travel credits for an around-the-world trip or money for her future studies, and other prizes . . . all for being one heck of a nurse.

And, she has. All at the age of 23.

Journey Elevates Staff via Celebration

The reason Kelsey won her first-place award and prizes is the brainchild of her company’s leadership, namely Bernie McGuinness, president and CEO of Journey, and one of the organization’s co-founders along with Sam Akabas and Tony Ruberg, respectively, from the real estate and investment sectors.

Journey counts 22 SNFs in its portfolio, with communities in Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Ohio, and West Virginia. Based in Noblesville, Ind., it is a relative newcomer to the space even though McGuinness is an industry veteran.

It is McGuinness who thought of the idea to bring the best nurses and CNAs from each community (as selected by each SNF) together in two separate “America’s Got Talent”-style competitions, focused of course on their job skills. The nurse competition took place this fall in Indianapolis, and the CNAs gathered in Atlanta. Leaders from the long-term care sector formed the judging panels for each competition focused on five skills, like wound treatment and timely placement of IVs.

“It’s really a skills summit derived from the universal concept that all direct-care workers in long-term care deal with . . . their core competencies on display in competition,” McGuinness said.

Journey prides itself on its staff and the level of quality care delivered to residents across the company’s footprint. So, the competitions were just part of the program. The other part focused on celebration, greeting the nurses and CNAs onsite with the excitement of a Hollywood premiere.

“They were already winners by being there representing their communities as the best nurse and best CNA, the best of the best. We celebrated everyone before and after naming the winners,” he said.

Prizes Galore

At stake once the points were tallied by the judges for the nurses was a $2,500 travel voucher to go anywhere in the world for the third-place winner as well as one of the training mannequins used in the skills competition to take back to their facility. Second place received a $5,000 travel voucher and a mannequin, and first place a $10,000 travel voucher, a full scholarship for the next level of education, and again a mannequin, as well as a spot as a judge in the 2026 competitions.

The CNAs received the same awards for the top three finishers. Now, the kicker. ALL 22 individuals at the CNA competition won a scholarship (plus Kelsey, the winner at the Nurses Summit). Originally, it was planned that only two people, one nurse and one CNA, would win the scholarship, but the surprise was that all 22 CNAs won. A bonanza from top to bottom, which was a bolt from the blue for all involved.

“As owners, Tony, Sam, and I, surprised all of the participants and awarded 22 nursing scholarships [plus Kelsey]. This goes to our vision statement, to change the world one heart at a time. I reminded myself of what we do every day, changing the world, one person, one heart at a time,” McGuinness said.

The reaction by the nurses and CNAs? “Not one dry eye in the place. An amazing moment,” he said.

Putting Skills to the Test

In the run-up to the Indianapolis and Atlanta summits, CNAs competed in 17 skills at their home facility: hand hygiene, PPE donning/doffing, catheter care, colostomy/ileostomy care, bathing, handling soiled linen, dressing/grooming, weighing a resident, range of motion, transfers/bed mobility, bed making, oral care, nutrition/hydration, turning and repositioning, vital signs, reporting abnormal findings, POC return demo, and medication administration.

In turn, the 17 skills nurses had to master included: hand hygiene, PPE donning/doffing, medication administration, glucometers, vital signs, tube feeding, IV therapy, trach care/suctioning, urinary catheter management, ostomy care, wound care, specimen collection, venipuncture for lab draws, physical assessment, and documenting in software.

The panel judges for the Nurse Summit in Indianapolis were Alicia Cantinieri - Zimmet Healthcare Services Group, Tim Craig - LTC 100, Rick Bobay - Total Family Care Practice, and Amber Miller - Alixa Rx. And, for the CNA Summit in Atlanta: Pam Clayton – GHCA, Mark Parkinson – AHCA and Park Place Live, Steven Littlehale - Zimmet Healthcare Services Group, and Adam Mather - KCARE (formerly KHACF).

Back to Kelsey’s Real Motivation

Now that she has been crowned the winner of the Indianapolis competition, you would think the award haul would be the key factor behind Kelsey’s drive to succeed. But when you spend a few minutes hearing Kelsey talk about her devotion to caring for her residents, it’s not the award swag that gives her that obvious adrenaline-rush of motivation, no, that comes from somewhere deep inside where she says God has granted her a wish to undertake a meaningful career, and life.

“We are in a healthcare desert [in central Kentucky]. In my hometown, for instance, for us to drive to any medical facility at all is a 30-minute drive,” she said.

“So, the nursing home is closer but the reason I chose this path instead of being many others and ending up as an ER nurse or in a surgical center, is that there is a need in long-term care for passionate people to take care of residents. It is about making a difference and at Journey with our ‘Change the World, One Heart at a Time’ mission, it has been amazing to me, and I thank God for the ability to do it.”

As for the award and presents tied to it, Kelsey said she and her husband are still mulling where to go with all of the free travel vouchers. She is also more than happy to have brought back the practice mannequin and will decide on future schooling down the road a bit.

“I am still in a form of absolute pure shock. I thought there is no way I have won this,” Kelsey said. But she has.

Please click on the links below for short videos on the two Journey celebrations:
Indy Skills Challenge - Day 1 Sneak Peek
Journey - GA Skills Challenge Morning

Questions or comments, please contact Patrick Connole at pconnole@parkplacelive.com.