Ms. Barchue, born in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, West Indies, immigrated to London, England where she received her nursing Diploma. Additionally she received a Bachelor of Arts in Leadership (Magna Cum Laude) from Sacred Heart University, Fairfield, CT and a MSc in Organization and Management with a Specialization in Leadership (Summa Cum Laude) from Capella University, Minneapolis, MN.
She also holds a Certificate in Nursing Management from Fairfield University, CT and is a graduate of the Northeast Healthcare Leadership Institute and holds the distinction of being the first Veterans Health Administration Fellow Mentor at the James J Peters (JJP), Veterans Medical Center. and one of the first in Veterans Health Administration at large.
Ms. Barchue was a national coach and mentor with the Northeast Health Care Leadership Institute. She has coached in many areas of the Veterans Administration Healthcare system where many of her ‘mentees’ have gone on to leadership positions, and is often contacted nationally for advice and guidance.
Ms. Barchue recently retired as the Associate Medical Center Director Clinical Operations at James J. Peters Veteran Administration Medical Center, Bronx, New York. She had worked at that facility for thirty-seven and a half years. She joined as a staff nurse and progressed upwardly through the organization, with increasing responsibilities. Her area of specialty is critical care, both in London, England and the United States.
In her past position she supervised a staff of 550 which included doctors, nurses, social workers, and other ancillary and administrative staffs. She oversaw the day-to-day management of the Emergency Department (ED); twenty beds combined Intensive Care Unit (ICU), the Pulmonary Respiratory Program, Pulmonary Function Test, Sleep Diagnostic Center, Nutrition and Hospitality, Internal Medicine, Graduate Medical Program, Development and Learning Organization, Imaging / Radiology Programs, and three in-patients medical- surgical units.
Effective leadership, coaching, mentoring, and being a patient advocate are some of the skills Ms. Barchue exemplifies. With over thirty-five years of leadership experience, she has been very successful in terms of motivating people to be efficient and effective and leading them through many organizational changes. Reflecting her passion, she implemented the Veterans Integrated Systems Network (VISN) annual Nurse Managers Conference, and later a one-week off station Boot Camp for all senior executives at the JJP.
Ms. Barchue has instructed several medical and nursing courses and has created many hospital programs and chaired many committees. She has received local and national recognition for her various roles in the industry.
Some of the programs with which Ms Barchue was affiliated were:
- Nurse coordinator for the Veterans Administration Medical Center National Emergency Medical Response Team. Here, she ensured that VISN 3 and National employees were trained, and ready for any local and/or national disaster deployment.
- At the James J Peters VA she was the coordinator for the LiveON NY Organ Donor Program and Eye Bank for Sight Restoration and was instrumental in having a combined VISN 3 Agreement; one in which LiveON NY paid the medical centers for the use of their operating rooms for organ procurement.
- Chairperson VISN 3, Medical-Surgical Commodity Standards Sub-Committee and worked with a team to standardize all supplies/equipment in the nine VA hospitals in this area.
One of her most notable accomplishments was the pilot program for Intermediate Care Technicians (ICT). This program came out of an initiative from President Obama designed to provide jobs for Medics and Corpsmen who are returning Veterans. The VA Secretary, General Shinseki partnered with the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Office of Nurses Service (ONS) to place highly skilled Veterans in the Emergency Department. Ms. Barchue’s Emergency Dept was accepted as one of 15 VA hospitals to participate in the program, the only one in the Northeast.
The JJP VAMC was the highest performer and became the “go to” facility for questions and answers. Ms. Barchue and her team along with one of the ICTs were interviewed for the VHA news, which is featured on the television broadcast “The American Veteran,” a daily televised newsmagazine program which highlights services and benefits available to Veterans, and is also highlighted in the VA “The Weekly Educator”. She was later invited to write a chapter in a book about the success of her program (see below publications)
Ms. Barchue is a zealous proponent of patient advocacy and excellence in medical care and has demonstrated her ability to sustain excellence in patient care having had numerous external reviews in which her areas have excelled. Ms. Barchue has presented at many conferences; and is known and respected through the VA organization for her vision, leadership, mentorship and consistent pursuit of quality care for veterans.
She enjoys reading, writing, cooking, walking, swimming and watching black and white movies. She volunteers as a nurse on the Emergency Response Team in Greenwich, CT where she resides.