Prime Care Nursing, the only nurse-owned staffing agency in the state, concluded National Nurses Week with a ribbon cutting ceremony for its new location, 1565 S. Main St.
The ceremony befittingly took place on the birthdate of Florence Nightingale, a revered pioneer of the nursing and healthcare fields whose passion inspired Prime Care Nursing owner, Emry Oxford, R.N.
Oxford is a trailblazer in his own right as he established Prime Care Nursing in 1987 and since, has expanded the enterprise from north to south Mississippi and beyond.
Oxford was asked what it meant to be able to add to the burgeoning enterprise that is Prime Care Nursing.
“I never knew that it would be what it is, but I never didn’t think I couldn’t do whatever I set out to and I was just afforded the opportunity,” he replied.
After graduating from Mississippi Delta Community College, Oxford began working at Delta Regional Medical Center and eventually, New Orleans as he already had a place of residence available.
The draw to the Crescent City wasn’t necessarily the gumbo, crawfish or the oysters, though they may have helped.
Oxford noted the nursing pay in New Orleans was “pretty good,” so he began working for an agency there and soon came up with a business plan to expand the existing office he worked for as opposed to starting a new one.
The venture did not come easy, but it seemingly came full circle.
Before beginning his pursuits in New Orleans, Oxford worked at a Greenwood company for Prime Care’s current president of operations, Ann Barnes.
Barnes, who is also a registered nurse, noted she and Oxford had worked together in the past.
She recalled Oxford’s love for travel and exploration and his gearing up to “broaden his horizons a bit” as it pertained to Prime Care Nursing.
“So, he wanted to get somebody else to come in and ensure that things ran smoothly,” Barnes said. “He hired me over 20 years ago now.”
Oxford said he would sometimes be asked, “Why Greenville?”
Not that he would expect most people to understand, but it is quite simple for him.
“Greenville has been good to me,” he said. “They may ask because it doesn’t have as much going on as other places sometimes, but it’s just where my heart is and we started here.”
From Highway 82, to Jackson, all the way to the Gulf Coast, Prime Care Nursing’s presence is strong throughout the state of Mississippi.
Oxford’s Mississippi Delta roots are just as strong.
His mother is a Leland native, but he grew up and graduated from high school in Jackson.
In 1977, he moved to the Delta and became a nurse in 1984.
Although the nursing profession has brought about several changes for Oxford, the one constant that has brought him success is his “don’t quit” attitude.
“As I continued my education I was told that I couldn’t do it, but I went on to graduate from Mississippi College and from Southern and when I was working with co-workers from Southern they were telling me, ‘You can’t open an agency, that’s not going to make a better nurse,’” he recalled. “And I told them, ‘No, but money will make a nurse show up.’”
Oxford pointed out that typically, he and his counterparts are sometimes looked at as the metaphorical “red-headed step children” of the healthcare field because paying nurses a premium to meet a demand is not exactly ideal for some facilities or healthcare entities — a plight he understands.
After six months at King’s Daughters Hospital, Oxford put his plan into action by mapping out 10 potential cities for operation as he knew “what to do and where to do it.”
Columbus was one of the first operations and Vicksburg followed.
Oxford said the hospital in Columbus had never experienced contract nursing, but the director of nursing told him, “If you can jump up high enough to kiss this doctor’s butt, you’ll make it.”
He did just that.
“I just would always hit the ground running and I always go see people and I would always have something to give them and it’s not so much that it’s important to give them something, it’s just my excuse to go see them,” Oxford said, highlighting the significance of relationships with his clients. “That’s the way I feel like we’ve made it is by personal contact and we’ve been open 24-7 for 35 years and we answer the phones — we don’t have an answering service — it’s about making sure they see us.”
Every Christmas, Oxford is intentional about visiting clients and bearing cookies and company calendars to express his sentiments.
“It’s just good to put a name with a face and that’s what I think is important,” he said.
Anyone who comes to work for Prime Care receives assistance with schooling and the opportunity to better themselves with no obligation to remain at Prime Care Nursing, Oxford highlighted.
Relationships, when it comes to clients and staff, are Oxford’s life and are what Prime Care was founded upon and is continuing to be built upon.
About Prime Care Nursing
Some of the services provided by Prime Care Nursing include staffing nurses for medical centers, nursing homes, medical offices and clinics.
We staff nurses for both temporary and long-term needs and provide skilled nurses for all situations, including vacations, holiday, sick leave, as well as for extended periods of time. With over 30 years of providing supplemental staffing, they understand staffing needs.
Prime Care Nursing’s Greenville office can be reached at 662-335-4298.
