Founder of Grace Avail At Home Changes The Stereotype of Home Health Care

Who is Shamika Livingston outside of your bio?

Outside of my resume and bio, I am a mom of 4 beautiful children Na’tion, Natajaha, William, and Cecil III. I am a wife to my wonderful husband Cecil. We are high school sweethearts and have been married for 18 years. My husband and children are my everything. I have always had a leadership and entrepreneurship mentality; my everyday thoughts consist of movement and motions that are related and circulate around business and leadership goals.

How did you know that you wanted to have a career in the medical field?

I originally started off as a Rehabilitation Nursing Technician while developing and discovering healthcare. I originally started my education off with criminal justice and political science but that was not for me. God had bigger plans for me. Deep down I always had an interest in neurology and psychology. The Rehabilitation facility that I was working for specializes in Traumatic Brain Injuries and Rehabilitation. I would say I grew an interest in the nursing field when I came across a patient that was unable to return home because she had suffered from a stroke when she was young, had a career in nursing and was suffering from a divorce. This patient in particular led me to grow an interest in healthcare even more.

So Grace Avail At Home LLC launched in 2016, but I initially started to research Home Care Agencies Start-ups between 2010 – 2016. In between this time frame my knowledge of healthcare and homecare was very basic and led me to ongoing research in starting this type of business. The idea of Grace Avail At Home emerged from the women I took care of at the Rehabilitation facility for Traumatic Brain Injuries patients. She was depressed and spiraling into a dark place because she could not return home and care for her son and her marriage had dissolved. I just remember giving her words of encouragement and building her self-esteem by giving her a wig to put on to cover her surgical scars. There was still one problem I could not fix and that was her returning home versus going to a nursing home because she had suffered from a stroke. Between 2010 -2016 home care service and agencies in my area was very limited versus today’s number of agencies. This led me to return to nursing school and open a home care agency of my own to help provide more services in the area and allow people to live independent and dignified lives at home with assistance.

You’re also an author, can you tell us about the books you’ve published?

Yes, I have authored the following books:

I recently just attend the Momboss Conference of 2023 which was the celebration of the collaborative book called Momboss (Balancing Business and Babies)

Momboss (Balancing Business and Babies) – This collaborative book is with other mom bosses. The visionary is Whitney L. Brook. This book is about mom bosses telling our story about how we started our business and maintained our home life as a wife, mom, employee, and businesswoman. My chapter is called “Trauma to Reward”

The Audacity to be Empowered – This is a collaborative book by the visionary Angela Lewis. This book is about the journey of me believing in myself and living my best life unapologetically. My chapter is called: “The Audacity to be Validated”

And last but not least I am the Visionary of my own Anthology book called “WIN” Women In Nursing: The Entrepreneur Anthology, the ultimate guide for women in nursing who aspire to become successful business owners. I am looking for women with inspiring stories who have transitioned from traditional bedside nursing to becoming a CEO of their own businesses.

What would you like our readers to gain from this interview?

I would like for my now and future aspiring entrepreneur to understand that anything is possible to accomplish when you pray and put your all into it. You have to do nothing about starting and running a business easily. You must also study and research the business before starting so you have a true understanding of the ins and outs of the business. So many people are mimicking other businesses and starting the same business to try and get rich but the business you choose has to be for you it has to be your destiny and you must put your whole heart into it.

What are you looking forward to most in 2023?

I am really excited about my Anthology “WIN” Women In Nursing: The Entrepreneurial Anthology. I truly believe this anthology will be a great tool and guide for our future business owners that are in healthcare or are nurses. So many nurses I believe don’t know that we as nurses can start so many businesses that are health and wellness related. I want nurses to know they are not capped off to just bedside nursing and they can be a CEO as well.

How can our readers connect with you?

Shamika: Email: livingstonshamika@gmail.com

Facebook: shamika.livingston

Facebook: graceavailathomellc

Website: www.graceavailathome.com

Website: www.shamikalivingston.com

To register to participate in my Anthology “WIN” Women In Nursing go to www.winwomeninnursing.com