About Me
My name is Nelson Gbeve. I am a photographer turned nurse, entrepreneur, and now an author. I am also a husband and a father.
My professional journey actually started with photography. For years, I worked as a photographer, building Denelsons Photography and learning what it meant to work for myself, serve clients, and build something from the ground up.
Later, my journey took me into healthcare, where I became a nurse. Eventually, I decided to combine my experience as an entrepreneur with what I had learned working in healthcare, and that led me to start Deserved Care, a healthcare staffing agency.
When I started Deserved Care, I knew healthcare, and I had experience running a business, but I really didn't know the healthcare staffing business. I had to learn it.
I made phone calls. I researched. I asked questions. I made mistakes. Some things worked, and some didn't. There were good seasons in the business, and there were also some very difficult ones. But each experience taught me something.
That is really where a lot of what I share today comes from.
I don't consider myself someone who has everything figured out. I am still working, still building, and still learning. But I believe that when you learn something that could make the road a little easier for the person coming behind you, there is value in sharing it.
That is one of the reasons I wrote How to Build a Healthcare Staffing Agency from the Ground Up. It is the book I wish I had when I was trying to figure all of this out for myself.
This website is a place for me to share some of what I have learned, what I am working on, and what I continue to learn along the way.
I'm still building. One step at a time.
These days, much of my work is centered around healthcare, entrepreneurship, and sharing what I have learned from building and operating a healthcare staffing agency.
I continue to run Deserved Care, which means I am still involved in the day-to-day realities of the business. Over the years, I have had to learn about everything from starting the company and becoming compliant to pricing, recruiting employees, managing payroll and cash flow, working with facilities, negotiating contracts, and dealing with some difficult setbacks along the way.
A lot of what I know today came from actually having to figure these things out for myself.
That experience is what led me to write How to Build a Healthcare Staffing Agency from the Ground Up. I wanted to take what took me years to learn and put it into something practical that someone else could learn from.
I am also beginning to spend more time sharing that experience directly with people who are starting their own healthcare staffing agencies or trying to figure out their next step. I don't believe there is one perfect way to build a business, and I don't have every answer. What I can offer is the perspective of someone who has actually done the work, made mistakes, learned from them, and continues to operate in the industry.
Whether through my book, the resources I create, or a conversation, my goal is to make some of what I have learned useful to the person coming behind me.
If my experience can shorten someone else's learning curve, then it is worth sharing.
What I’m Working on
Work with Me
I offer one-on-one consultation sessions for people who are starting a healthcare staffing agency or have already started and need some direction on what comes next.
When I started Deserved Care, I spent a lot of time trying to figure things out for myself—making phone calls, researching, asking questions, making mistakes, and learning from experience. Today, I can sit across from someone who is going through that same process and understand many of the questions they are asking because I have asked those questions myself.
These sessions are practical conversations. Bring your questions and tell me where you are. We can talk through areas such as getting started, compliance, pricing, recruiting and managing employees, finding facilities, contracts, cash flow, or some of the challenges you are currently facing in your agency.
I don't approach consultation as someone who has every answer. I approach it as someone who has built and operated a healthcare staffing agency and is willing to share what I have learned—the things that worked, the mistakes I made, and what I would do differently today.
Sometimes, having a conversation with someone who has already walked the road you're on can help you see your next step more clearly.
Book Resources.
Companion Resources for Readers
Use the downloadable tools below as you work through the corresponding sessions in How to Build a Healthcare Staffing Agency from the Ground Up.
SESSION 8A
Startup Capital Calculator
Estimate the startup capital you may need as you prepare to launch a healthcare staffing agency.
SESSION 9
Pricing Calculator
Work through your employee costs, expenses, and pricing as you determine what to charge your facilities.