Katherine Clemente
Gifford Health Care’s Primary Care team continues to grow, with Physician Assistant Katherine Clemente starting this month in Randolph and Nurse Practitioner Pascale Stephani joining providers at Gifford’s Berlin location.
Clemente provides a wide range of care services and has clinical interests in women’s health and sports medicine. The Vermont native finds making connections with patients the most rewarding aspect of her work, and is drawn to Gifford’s sense of community.
“I am very tightly tied to my community—central Vermont is my home—and Gifford is small, intimate, warm and caring,” said Clemente, who knew from an early age that she wanted to work in health care, inspired in part by her mother, who has worked as a PA since the 1970s. “It has been a wonderful connection between us. We are very tied together by our profession. I think of medicine as my mother tongue.”
Clemente is a familiar face at Gifford, having started her PA career six years ago at Gifford’s Rochester Health Center. Since then, she has gained additional experience as a PA throughout Vermont: at Northern Counties Health Care in Concord, Green Mountain Orthopedic Surgery/Central Vermont Orthopedic and Sports Medicine in Berlin, and Associates in Orthopaedic Surgery in South Burlington. She earned a master’s degree in physician assistant studies from Franklin Pierce University in West Lebanon, N.H., and a bachelor’s degree from Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. When not at work, she enjoys mountain biking, skiing, climbing, making stained glass, blacksmithing, woodworking, and spending time with her two dogs.
Pascale Stephani
Stephani provides care to patients of all ages. She brings to Gifford more than 20 years of nursing experience, including 15 years as a dedicated family nurse practitioner. Her clinical interests include women’s health issues, and she takes a team approach to patient care.
“The more informed patients are, the better off they are,” Stephani said. “I am not here to dictate to them. We work as a team. I am here to help people—to teach and to help them get better.”
Stephani also is drawn to Gifford’s sense of community, and prefers “the family feel of a smaller hospital.” Originally from Montreal, Quebec, Canada, she moved to Vermont in 2010. Her professional experience includes, most recently, eight years as a family nurse practitioner at Central Vermont Primary Care in Berlin, as well as several years as a staff nurse at health-care facilities in New York, Utah and Canada. She is a registered nurse (RN) and nationally certified nurse-midwife (CNM), women’s health nurse practitioner (WHNP) and family nurse practitioner (FNP). She earned a bachelor’s degree in nursing from the University of Montreal, her CNM and WHNP from the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, and her FNP from Westminster College in Salt Lake City. When not at work, she stays active with her four children and enjoys snowboarding, biking, hiking, and visiting family in Montreal.
In addition to Stephani and Clemente, Gifford recently announced Dr. Emilija O. Florance joined the Primary Care team and sees patients in Randolph and Berlin. For more information about Primary Care, visit giffordhealthcare.org/service/primary-care.
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