Last Updated: May 9, 2025
When RHHD’s Public Health Nurse Keesha Sellers learned she’d been named VDH’s Central Virginia Nurse of the Year, she began reflecting on the journey that brought her to public health nursing.
Keesha grew up in a military family and spent five years in the Navy. As a former Army nurse, her mom encouraged her to think about nursing as a second career. “Nursing wasn’t something I immediately wanted to do, but my mother always told me I had the character for it, that it was about pouring into people.”
When Keesha had her children, she realized she was ready for a profession that was about that kind of service, both to her family and her community. “Having children changed my view of the world. It became about nurturing and service. I wanted to meet people where they are at in their health journey.”
The military paid for Keesha to go back to nursing school, and she worked in different areas of healthcare before joining RHHD in 2018. “I fell in love with public health,” she says. “Helping underserved populations is humbling. I get to start by asking patients, ‘what does health look like to you?’ and then we go from there.”
Keesha’s supervisor, Ashley Lancaster, says Keesha exemplifies some of the most important public health values: “Keesha lives and breathes commitment to our immunization program success and our VDH mission as a whole. Keesha was one of the first of our nurses to, not only give, but also to receive a COVID vaccination in December 2020. She regularly comes in early and stays past her scheduled work time without hesitation, to ensure we are well positioned to respond to community needs.”
In addition to immunization work, Keesha has a special place in her heart for our newcomer clinic. “It has been huge to see clients come from countries where healthcare might not be the priority. I watch them come through the door and work hard to navigate new healthcare habits. And I love watching populations of women come in and see that we’re a clinic run mostly by women. I see a lightbulb go off in their head, like ‘I could do that.’ Some of them ask me how I got to where I am. And I always say, ‘here in this country, this is in reach for you.’”
On tough days, Keesha thinks about a mom she met at the clinic. The woman had lost her husband and two children in Afghanistan and was bringing her remaining family in for newcomer appointments. Keesha sat with her and listened while the children had their check-ups. At the end of the visit, she shared some mental health resources and connected the family with a Community Health Worker. “I just tried to say, “lean on your children. They’re a part of you and your husband, and we’ll help you get through this, too.” A few months later, when Keesha ran into the family at a local Wal-Mart, the mom repeated some of the guidance and resources Keesha had shared, reminding her that these short conversations can have long-term impact.
Keesha says she’s able to focus on clients because she knows she has an extraordinary team of public health workers working alongside her. “These people are my rock,” she says. “From getting our records together to communicating with clients over the phone, to sharing information about environmental health, everyone here has the biggest heart. When we lift each other up, we’re also lifting clients up.”
The sons that started Keesha’s journey into nursing are now embarking on their own careers. Both have graduated from Virginia State University and are following their mom’s and grandparents’ footsteps into the military. Keesha hopes her youngest will find his way to the medical field, and she encourages other recent graduates to consider healthcare, too: “If you’re someone invested in service and meeting people where they’re at in their health journey, this is where you’ll thrive!”
To learn more about RHHD’s clinic offerings, visit our clinic webpages for Richmond and Henrico; our whole staff shares Keesha’s investment in client-centered care! As you can see in this report from the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Keesha was the face of RHHD’s vaccination efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic.