By Angelia Scott
The Town of Bedford recently hired a new Public Health Nurse, Jackie Barmashi. She started her role in early May this year. Barmashi has been a resident of Bedford her whole life which as she stated, “is one of my favorite parts of my job – to work for my hometown.”
Barmashi has an impressive educational background, earning two bachelor’s degrees. She earned her first degree in 2017 from the University of Massachusetts Lowell, graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Nutritional Sciences. That fall, she went back to school at Northeastern University in their nursing program. Shortly after, she completed her second degree, receiving her Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2018.
She began her career at Newton Wellesley Hospital, where she worked during the pandemic on the medical oncology floor. Following this, she took a position at Boston Children’s Hospital, working in the organ transplant and acute surgical care unit. With this role, she gained experience working with complex pediatric patients. After her time as an inpatient nurse, she transitioned to public health nursing, starting as an elementary school and summer camp nurse. She excelled in these roles for two years until she was offered her current position as the Bedford Public Health Nurse.
Barmashi originally went into nursing because she wanted to provide help to patients, but her passions were deeper than that. She enjoyed science, particularly biochemistry, and saw nursing as the perfect blend of her interest in patient care and scientific inquiry. She found the opportunity to meet with community members on a small or even individual scale quite interesting, which led her to pursue a career in public health nursing.
As the new Public Health Nurse, Barmashi said one of her interests is the initiative to increase access to and education about naloxone. She is also very passionate about mental health and veterans’ access to healthcare.
Taking this new role has been a joy for Barmashi, especially working in Bedford. She remarked that all the residents and other town employees she’s worked with have been “really friendly and great to work with.” Her recent activities have been centered around the daily responsibilities of a public health nurse, such as tracking infectious diseases. While getting familiar with her new role, Barmashi collaborated with Emerson Health and IMPACT Melanoma to reinvigorate the sunscreen dispensers around town to promote skin safety. Currently, she is gathering and developing swim safety and swim lesson information and is also working on summer camp inspections.
Outside of public health, Barmashi enjoys running, reading, watching the Bruins, spending time with friends and family, and eating Bedford Farms Ice Cream. She is also a huge Harry Potter fan.
Barmashi’s connection to Bedford runs deep. Her mom grew up in Bedford, and both of her parents are currently residents. So, you might just find our new Public Health Nurse around town, helping our community in many different ways.
The author of this article, Angelia Scott, is a rising sophomore at Bedford High School.
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