TINAMARIE ESTES-WASHINGTON (39) 
Director Of Nursing, Allegheny Health Network, Forbes Hospital

In the midst of coronavirus pandemic uncertainty, Tinamarie Estes-Washington faced a complicated challenge: Figure out how to run the first mass-vaccination clinic at Forbes Hospital in Monroeville. She succeeded; in all, she helped 20,000 people get their shots, plus led an outreach clinic to serve an additional 227 underserved residents.

In addition to her work with patients, Estes-Washington also uses her Ph.D. in nursing administration as Forbes Hospital’s diversity, equity and inclusion officer. She’s worked on staff training, overdose awareness efforts, Pride celebrations and Juneteenth commemorations.

“Being African American in health care definitely presented me with some challenges from the beginning, up until even now,” she says. “I’ve had patients say that they didn’t want me to be their caregiver simply because I’m African American, and I never want anybody to experience that or feel that way.”