Nursing experience and training in the U.S. Navy and Air Force prepared Justin Thornsberry, R.N., to meet any challenge with a calm, measured approach as well as incredible skill.

Story by: Kate Eller on February 4, 2020

How do you prepare for just about any situation work life throws at you? For Justin Thornsberry, R.N.,   director of quality and clinical effectiveness at Norton Audubon Hospital, his experience and training in the U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force prepared him to meet any challenge with a calm, measured approach as well as incredible skill.

Whether on the ground, at sea or in the air, Justin was ready for action during more than 10 years in the military. In Rota, Spain, at the start of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Justin helped set up a 250-bed tent hospital and provided care for the injured. He was a member of a five-person shipboard surgical team that provided direct surgical trauma support to U.S. special operations forces as they conducted counterterrorism operations in and around the Philippine Sea. In 2010, Justin became a flight nurse instructor after transferring his military service to the U.S. Air Force. As part of that role, he provided emergency care for in-flight medical emergencies. During his tenure with the military, Justin also served as a nurse manager, leading a team that cared for 50,000 patients a year, and as the chief nurse of a medical group that supported 1,400 Air National Guard members.

Justin has drawn on his varied military experience to shape the leader he is becoming at Norton Healthcare. He joined the organization in February 2014 as a nurse manager at Norton Hospital and has been in his current role since December 2018.

“The military has taught me to always prioritize the care of people in all capacities” Justin said. “I realized early on that as a leader you are only as effective as the members of your team. Without their support the mission will fail.”