Royal Braintree Director of Nurses Kandance Frazier

Any nursing home administrator will tell you, you’re only as good as your director of nurses, and Royal Braintree Executive Director Todd Funk has a great DoN in Kandance Frazier.

“We are so lucky to have Kandy with us,” says Funk. “She has energized the staff, she knows her stuff, and most importantly, she cares about people.”

The Tennessee native found herself in the Boston area as a young adult, working with at-risk girls at an alternative school, and counseling the homeless at Fr. Bill’s Place in Quincy. “I thought I was going to change the world,” says Kandy.

The closing of mental health facilities in the Bay State at that time made it more difficult for people to get the services they needed, but Kandy eventually found other ways to help, entering the field of nursing. After graduating from Quincy College, Kandy worked at St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in Brighton, Brigham and Women’s in Boston, and Quincy Medical Center before taking her skills to a nursing home setting.

“This is such a great job for me,” says Kandy. “I have the resources to provide good care, including the latest technology. There’s a lot of respect for nursing here, which isn’t true in many facilities, believe it or not. And I have a really good core staff here – we’re building a team and getting stronger every day.”

For the Director of Nursing and the Executive Director, it’s a mutual admiration society.

“Todd is a straightforward guy. He’s got a good sense of humor, which you need in this business, and he understands the needs of our residents. He knows this is their home, and his approach is, ‘what do they need, and let’s get it done.’”

Kandy’s approach is much the same. Changing the world? In her own way, maybe she is, impacting the lives of every resident who calls Royal Braintree “home.”