by Lee Pierre
Being an accountant wasn’t working for Keisha Manning. Originally from Jamaica, Manning began her professional career in accounting before realizing her true calling was healthcare. She enrolled in university and began working toward her degree.
After Manning completed her first year in nursing school, her mother became ill in and she had to care for her. It caused a setback in her finances. Later Manning got a break after she applied for grants. The first part of the program was in a clinical rotation and later in the Intensive Care Unit.
Manning signed up for a traveling nurse position. However, family circumstances did not allow her to complete the required test. She was still caring for her mother. Fortunately, during her second year, Manning was awarded a full scholarship and two grants, giving her the support she needed to complete her education. After graduation, she specialized in critical nursing, a field where she worked saving thousands of lives.
Her transition from nurse to technology innovator began after relocating to the United States and spending several years as a travel nurse. Moving from assignment to assignment resulted in her witnessing firsthand the housing challenges faced by healthcare professions who relocate for work.
After seeing her nurse colleague forced to sleep in his car because hotels wouldn’t adjust their check-in time, following 12-hour night shift, Manning launched Nursesbnb. The platform eliminates these hurdles by offering furnished accommodations with reduced fees that embrace the irregular shifts of healthcare professionals, offering transparency to hosts and renters. The company expanded to a broader audience including corporate professionals, university students, and other individuals seeking safe, flexible, furnished housing during temporary relocations. Nursesbnb focuses on professional travelers, not vacationers.
After taking the Roanoke assignment, she was captivated by the mountains and atmosphere and decided to stay. Named as one of the top 30 Nurses Innovators Keisha is an expert on healthcare solutions. She is dedicated to being a force for good.
For Manning, the mission remains unchanged; connecting people with trusted housing options and creating new income opportunities for property owners and strengthening the communities they serve. This means more stable long-term renters for host; this model eliminates several hurdles experienced by host who accommodate short-term space. Property owners in the Roanoke/Salem region who are interested in becoming a host can do so by signing up at https://nursesbnb.com
