Title: Family Nurse Practitioner and Functional Medicine Practitioner
Company: Care First Functional Wellness
Location: Galax, Virginia, United States
Diane Helm, MSN, Family Nurse Practitioner and Functional Medicine Practitioner at Care First Functional Wellness, has been recognized by Marquis Who’s Who Top Healthcare Professionals for dedication, achievements and leadership in Nursing and Functional Medicine.
Ms. Helm has established a distinguished career in nursing and functional medicine, marked by more than three decades of clinical experience and a steadfast commitment to patient-centered care. As the family nurse practitioner and functional medicine practitioner at Care First Functional Wellness since 2025, she oversees all aspects of clinic operations, including patient consultations, laboratory review, follow-up care and medication management. Ms. Helm is also responsible for supervising a dedicated staff, managing insurance interactions and ensuring the highest standards of service delivery. Her expertise in functional medicine enables her to address the root causes of illness through personalized approaches that emphasize diet, exercise and supplementation. She also provides virtual consultations, expanding access to care for her patients.
In addition to her current leadership at Care First Functional Wellness, Ms. Helm has served as a family nurse practitioner at Twin County Urgent Care, Twin County Physician Practices, since 2021. In this role, she delivers urgent care services with a focus on rapid assessment and treatment in a fast-paced environment. Ms. Helm’s ability to adapt to unpredictable clinical scenarios has been instrumental in providing high-quality care to diverse patient populations.
Ms. Helm’s experience extends to her tenure as a registered nurse at Wake Forest Baptist Health, beginning in 2012, where she contributes to critical care teams and supports the complex needs of patients. Notably, Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist is a nationally recognized academic medical center and health system based in Winston-Salem, NC. As part of Advocate Health, it is recognized as the third-largest nonprofit health system in the U.S.
Besides these roles, Ms. Helm worked as a family nurse practitioner at the Pomona Emergency Intake Shelter in 2021, providing essential health care services in an emergency setting. From 2020 to 2021, she was a family nurse practitioner at CVS MinuteClinic, where she managed acute and chronic conditions for walk-in patients. Ms. Helm’s earlier roles included serving as a registered nurse at Carolina Cardiology Cornerstone within Wake Forest Baptist Health from 2009 to 2010 and as a registered nurse at Alamance Regional Medical Center Inc. (now Cone Health Alamance Regional) between 2006 and 2009. She also excelled as a registered nurse at Moses Cone Health System (now Cone Health Moses Cone Hospital) for nearly a decade beginning in 1997.
Ms. Helm began her health care journey as an emergency medical technician and nursing assistant during her high school years in Brooklyn, New York. These formative experiences inspired her lifelong dedication to nursing and patient advocacy. Throughout her career, Ms. Helm has developed expertise in family medicine, urgent care and functional medicine. She has also become recognized for her advanced clinical skills and compassionate approach to patient care.
Highly educated in her field, Ms. Helm earned an associate degree in registered nursing from Guilford Technical Community College in 1996. She then attended South University, where she received a Bachelor of Science in nursing science in 2015 and a master’s degree as a family nurse practitioner in 2020 from South University.
In addition to her formal education, Ms. Helm received multiple credentials that have enhanced her scope of practice. Among them, she is recognized as a critical care registered nurse-adult by the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, holds functional medicine certification, is a licensed nurse practitioner with both the Virginia Board of Nursing and the North Carolina Board of Nursing, and is a certified Reiki practitioner.
Ms. Helm’s professional affiliations include membership in the American Association of Nurse Practitioners and the North Carolina Nurses Association. She has also served as the vice president of the Greensburg chapter of the Council of Nurse Practitioners within the North Carolina Nurses Association. Ms. Helm’s commitment extends to volunteer work with International Medical Relief. She has traveled annually to Guatemala, Peru, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, delivering medical care in rural communities that lack basic resources, such as electricity and clean water. Notably, Ms. Helm provided health care along the Amazon River during her mission work in Peru.
Active in professional development as an educator and speaker, Ms. Helm taught a webinar in June 2025 about the gut-brain-vagus nerve connection and will be featured as a speaker at the upcoming nurse practitioner symposium in September 2025. Her contributions have been recognized with several honors, including the Functional Medicine Award and selection among The Great 100 Nurses by The Great 100 organization. Looking ahead, Ms. Helm plans to pursue further education by obtaining a Doctor of Nursing Practice while continuing to expand her functional medicine practice. She aims to help more individuals achieve wellness through natural methods, broaden her service and increase visibility so that more people can benefit from her expertise in holistic healthcare approaches.
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