My Path to Advocacy

By managing my father’s care and advocating for him, I realized there are people out there who need the exact kind of help I’d been giving my loved ones for years.
This was the beginning of Outreach Patient Advocates.

Nicky Wik, BCPA, CYT

My Path to Patient Advocacy

My entire adult life, I’ve worked in the administrative side of the healthcare field. Doing every job in the clinical office from transcription to billing to insurance to managing an office to marketing, I’ve achieved a complete understanding of the business side of the healthcare industry.

This experience also has affected my personal life. My father was diagnosed with a chronic heart condition when I was an early teen, and our family supported him through his many hospital visits and doctor appointments. When I married a man who is a type II diabetic, I learned everything I could about the disease to help him be as healthy as possible.

I’ve spent countless hours deciphering changing prescription coverages, translating insurance company explanation of benefits statements, ensuring labs and diagnostic tests were read and sent to the correct people, and talking with insurance providers and physicians’ offices for the two most important men in my life.

When my loved ones were hospitalized, I was always examining their discharge instructions, prescription medications and post-hospital doctor visits. Long before becoming a professional patient advocate, I was initiating meetings with physicians and charge nurses at the hospital to ensure timely discharges for my father’s many hospital stays.

When I’m not working, I love to spend time with my husband, our two boys, and our golden retriever. You can find us outside camping, fishing, golfing, hiking and snow skiing. I am an avid runner and certified yoga instructor.

Becky Korinek

Director of Business Development

Throughout my thirty-year career in Education, it’s been my joy to help others learn. I’m excited to be sharing OPA’s mission and helping people learn to advocate for themselves in a healthcare setting.

I’ve been a patient my whole life, starting with severe asthma when I was born, and continuing to now, still recovering from a major back surgery. I’ve always regarded doctors favorably, and still do. The problem is TIME. They don’t have enough of it. My job is to help you maximize that time and get the best outcome.

I’m so fortunate to have two sisters who live locally. Together, we take care of everything for my very active eighty-seven year old mom. It can be a very different story for those individuals who don’t have any family, or whose family is far away. It’s a privilege to assist those folks in whatever way I can.

When I’m not engaged in teaching and learning, I enjoy reading, creating art, taking walks, and spending time with my family.

Becoming A Board Certified Patient Advocate (BCPA)

Patient advocacy is the natural next step in a lifetime of experience and education based on serving others in the healthcare field. Early in Nicky’s career, she graduated from Nebraska College of Business in Medical Office Administration. In September 2020, she obtained the BCPA (Board Certified Patient Advocate) certification. Early in 2021, she became certified through the State of Nebraska as an ombudsman in which she advocates for the residents’ rights at skilled nursing and assisted living facilities.

What does BCPA mean?

BCPA is a credential earned by those who have studied and passed the official certification exam to determine their abilities and fitness for serving patients and their families who need assistance with some portion of their journey through the healthcare system.

– “What does BCPA mean?” Patient Advocate Certification Board, https://www.pacboard.org/what-does-bcpa-mean/

I Will Advocate For You and Your Family

I thoroughly enjoy working with patients and their family members. I will advocate for you and your family while helping to navigate the complex healthcare system by providing individualized tools and resources.