By Maya Carlyle
“Vanndy is somebody who is extraordinary, truly,” said Dr. Daryn Reicherter, MD, psychiatrist at AACI, a robust, multi-focus community health organization in San Jose, CA
He was being asked about Vanndy Loth, his employee, and a three time graduate from San José State University.
Dr. Vanndy Loth, DNP, MPH, MSN, RN, graduated from The Valley Foundation School of Nursing twice of those three SJSU graduations; first as she began her nursing career with her Bachelors of Science in Nursing (BSN), and after her MPH for her Masters she graduated again from the School of Nursing in 2021, completing her doctoral degree as a member of the first graduating cohort of SJSU’s stand-alone Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) program.
This spring, Dr. Loth has continued to be a Spartan, supporting her alma mater in a new way; this time agreeing to be interviewed as part of a project by the College of Health and Human Sciences to showcase the departments and schools under its umbrella.
“I have a strong desire to improve community mental health services through my nursing role…” Dr. Loth shared when she first applied to the DNP program. “My hopes are to gain insight into applying evidence based practice and to improve patient outcomes through improved quality of care. I [also] want to improve my skills as a nurse leader…”
And become a leader she did. While originally aiming to teach, Dr. Loth pursued nursing at the encouragement of her mother and found the work, from the beginning, to be “very rewarding.” Her first job as a new grad nurse from SJSU was in public health, working in the rural and less populous areas of Monterey County, where the competency and skills of TVFSON allowed her to tackle the more challenging cases to come through the clinic doors.
Now as a Program Manager in the Integrated Behavioral Health program at AACI, Dr. Loth continues to care for the community in culturally sensitive, policy-active, and educationally-focused ways. On May 3rd of this year, she and her AACI team were awarded a “Behavioral Health Community Hero Award” by the County of Santa Clara’s Behavioral Health Board for their work in addressing mental health in San Jose and the whole county.
During the interview for the College of Health and Human Sciences spotlight, Dr. Loth was asked what she thought might be next for her, now that she has her doctorate and has achieved some of the levels of leadership she had been aiming for.
“Teaching,” she responded, laughing a little at the full circle of her career. As a psychiatric nurse and community caretaker, Dr. Loth has a lot of knowledge to pass on, and looks forward to training the nurses who may one day take over her role.
Watch the College of Health and Human Sciences YouTube channel for highlights from Dr. Loth’s interview, coming later this summer.
For more information about The Valley Foundation School of Nursing, please visit sjsu.edu/nursing or call 408-924-3131.