Nurses Week 2017

Erie Times-News | GoErie.com |

Friday, May 5, 2017

Salute to An edition of the

Nurses

Friday, May 5, 2017

PART OF GATEHOUSE MEDIA’S

NURSES WEEK

About this section: We celebrate nurses this week

N

urses Week officially begins May 6, but every day is a good day to appreciate nurses.

In this special section that honors nurses, you will find some inspiring, emotional stories that

W H AT ’ S I N S I D E Saint Vincent nurses help lung transplant patient attend family wedding ...................... 2N Shriners nurse started and stayed at Shriners2N Priest’s scholarship helps nurse earn degree at Mercyhurst North East...........................................3N Hamot nurses organize school book drive.........6N Nurses organize hospital wedding ......................6N Nurses welcome chemo patients at Saint Vincent ............................................................ 7N Mother, daughter attend Gannon together.......7N Gannon students work with Housing Authority residents..................................................................10N Nursing certifications help patients..................10N Yahn scholarship benefits Hamot employee...10N Mercyhurst students share personal side of nursing........................................................ 12N — 13N Nurse devotes career to Pleasant Ridge Manor...14N HealthSouth nurse recalls childhood experience as patient ................................................................14N Behrend students participate in ‘Be the Match’ registry ....................................................................15N

More online Look for additional stories online at goerie.com/ topics/nurses

nurses share about patients and their careers.

Some of the writers share personal stories of how relatives influenced them to become the second and third generation of nurses in their families. Other writers tell readers about how and why they are advancing their educations here in the Erie community.

One thing is clear in all the stories shared.

Nurses care. A quote from Christine Belle, R.N., B.S.N., from NurseTogether.com, says “Our job as nurses is to cushion the sorrow and celebrate the joy, everyday, while we are ‘just doing our jobs.’”

Here’s a big thank you to all the nurses who share their compassion and talents with us every day.

NURSES WEEK

Nurse saves accident victim on her way home Contributed report

Inside Millcreek Community Hospital on an evening this past March, Karen DeDad, R.N., helped care for several patients. Outside, she helped save one’s life.

It was nearly midnight and raining. As she walked to her car in the lot across from the hospital, she noticed a parked car that was running with the driver’s side door partially open. She figured that the driver was waiting for someone so she got into her car and started home. But after driving several blocks towards home, an “unsettling feeling,” she said, made her turn around and go back.

Near the other car, she called out, “Are you all right?” After no response, she parked and went over to the car, where she found an unconscious man leaning back against the seat. DeDad quickly checked for and found a pulse, then ran to the Millcreek Community Hospital emergency room for help. Dr. Peter Laucks and LECOM police officer Jarret Kalicky rushed out and quickly got the patient into the ER for treatment —“treatment which absolutely saved his life, said Laucks, who

Karen DeDad saved an accident victim on her way home from work one night.

[CONTRIBUTED PHOTO]

also credited, “a busy ER staff that did an amazing job that night.”

DeDad has shied away from recognition for what she did, “but I’m extremely grateful that I followed my gut feeling,” she said. It was more than that, according to Mary Eckert, the hospital’s president and chief executive. “She made an extra effort and went out of her way to do the right thing,” she said. “She’s a credit to her profession.”

Now working in Millcreek’s Transitional Care Unit or TCU, DeDad is also grateful that she’s returned to clinical nursing after working more than 30 years as a medical case manager for an insurance company and an occupational health nurse in a manufacturing firm. Inside Millcreek Community Hospital, or outside, “I love being a nurse,” she said.

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Friday, May 5, 2017

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Erie Times-News | GoErie.com

Friday, May 5, 2017

Salute to An edition of the

Nurses

PART OF GATEHOUSE MEDIA’S

NURSES WEEK 2017

Shriners Hospital honors career nurse

By Mary Jane Antoon Shriners Hospitals for Children-Erie

Sue Margraf began her employment at Shriners Hospitals for Children-Erie (SHC-Erie) as a nurse’s aide in the outpatient clinic and then became a cast technician two years later. Margraf’s passion for excellent care to children and orthopedics was clearly evident in these roles and led her to college in the early 1990s to achieve her dream of becoming a registered nurse. She received her associate degree in nursing in 1995 from Gannon University and successfully passed her National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX).

Margraf embarked on her role as a registered nurse in the outpatient clinic in 1995. She is a well recognized and respected expert in caring for children across the full spectrum of orthopedic conditions, including cast work and care with kids of all ages.

She is respected by the medical staff, colleagues and hospital leadership. She also practices as a circulating nurse in the facility's ambulatory surgery center. Margraf's expertise has led her to develop and present scoliosis screening programs for school nurses, clubfoot care and cast work education for her peers, and lawn mower safety programs for elementary school children, among many others. She is a member of the multidisciplinary FIERCE Team, a center program for female adolescent sports injury prevention, and serves as coordinator for SHC-Erie outreach clinics.

She lives the mission of SHC and easily models the hospital's core values in her daily practice. She excels in ensuring an excellent experience for children and their families. She exemplifies the Love to the rescue® philosophy; no willing child ever leaves the clinic without a kiss from Margraf, happily departing with her lipstick mark present on their forehead and a big smile on their face.

Margraf believed it was important to her career to return to school for a bachelor of science in nursing degree. She proudly received her degree this past summer from Chamberlain College of Nursing.

She was an inspiration to other nurses in clinic, and

Sue Margraf, right, started at Shriner’s Hospital for Children - Erie as a nurse’s aide 38 years ago and later earned her degree as a registered nurse. She topped it off with a bachelor of science degree in nursing in 2016. [CONTRIBUTED PHOTO]

together three of them studied, supported each other and graduated with their degrees within close time frames.

Margraf participates in a number of community service projects, such as the Second Harvest Food Bank, adopt-a-school events and the Highmark Walk. She is an active volunteer for various events to raise the awareness of SHC-Erie services for the community and region, including Walk for Love, an annual telethon and Toast & Taste. She is a

NURSES WEEK

Team helps lung transplant patient

By Jean Lindenberger Saint Vincent Hospital

From left, Courtney Bigam, R.N.; Hayley Falkenhagen; Carrie Knapp; Shameen Salam, M.D.; Bridget Heller, R.N.; Jodi Webb, R.T.; Jean Lindenberger, R.N.; Emily Kuhn, R.N.; Rick Miaczynski; the Reverend Dennis Martin; and Nicole Letto, R.N.

pharmacy and pastoral care. Miaczynskiand her family appreciated the chance to participate and ask questions. The increased communication offered them an opportunity to make informed decisions regarding Miaczynski’s care.

The ICU rounds are a format for the sharing of ideas that impact patient care. Input from team members includes years of experience and varied institutional backgrounds. The result of this variety of opinions is passionate discussions regarding the best treatment for our patients. Each participant’s opinion or idea is weighed and discussed equally. Transformational leadership challenges us to challenge each other.

Collaboration within the team can only result in

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When Debbie Miaczynski went into respiratory failure in March of 2016, her health was a major concern, but she was also desperate to attend her daughter’s wedding, which was just three months away.

Miaczynskirequired mechanical ventilation and would eventually need a lung transplant, but the entire Intensive Care Unit team —many of us mothers and fathers ourselves —were determined to make sure she was able to be present for her daughter’s big day.

And one of the important tools we implemented to accomplish this was patient rounding.This means we put the patient first.

The ICU team at Saint Vincent Hospital incorporates all of the Highmark Core Behaviors when executing patient rounds. The rounds are multidisciplinary with the single goal of quality, patient-centered care.

The team developed a plan of care for Miaczynskiwith input from the patient, family, physicians, nursing, care coordination, respiratory, nutrition,

recipient of the Employee of the Quarter award and has also received recognition as a SHC “Shining Star” multiple times. She is an active member of the hospital's Best Place to Work Team, which strives to enhance employee engagement and a positive work environment.

She is a compassionate, positive and outgoing professional nurse. She has lived the mission of Shriners Hospitals for Children for the past 38 years and has never wavered in her passion for kids. quality care for the patient. Sharing information and insight among the team members is key in progressing each patient through a hospitalization. From a diet order to respiratory treatment to a palliative care conversation with the patient and family, each aspect plays a role in the delivery of care in our unit.

The care of each of our patients is evidence based, ensuring quality outcomes. The team utilizes its knowledge and experience to prioritize and address the needs of each patient. Input from the members of the team are welcomed and evaluated before execution.

We treat each individual patient as a family member, with compassion and a commitment to quality.

In Miaczynski’s case, Respiratory Therapy made sure she received her treatments. Nursing established early mobility goals to keep her active, and ultimately, she was weaned off the ventilator. We rounded daily, addressed and met the needs of Miaczynskiand her family —physical, psychological and spiritual.

We were all delighted to help her as she progressed, and we were thrilled when she was discharged and able to attend her daughter’s wedding in June. Miaczynski’s husband visited the unit to share family photos of the wedding with the staff.

Miaczynskireturned to the ICU in October, again requiring mechanical ventilation. She left our unit in February and received a bilateral lung transplant at Cleveland Clinic. She has not returned home yet, but the family continues to share photos of her with all of us in the unit. She is a true success story for us and embodies the value of implementing the Highmark Core Behaviors.

Erie Times-News | GoErie.com |

Kristin Lupole is attending the L.P.N. to R.N. bridge program at Mercyhurst North East with help from a scholarship created by the Rev. Eldon J. Somers, a long-time educator who wanted to further the lives and careers of those who provided him care while at Springhill. [CONTRIBUTED PHOTO]

NURSES WEEK 2017

Scholarship helps donor’s caregiver Contributed by Mercyhurst North East

K

ristin Lupole witnessed the essence of nursing as a child and knew it was her calling.

She lived next door to her grandmother, who had many medical issues including diabetes and paralysis, and watched as nurses came daily to the home to help.

“It was amazing, the things they did for her to make her life better so she could stay at home,” said Lupole, whose grandmother died when she was 10. “I always knew that’s what I wanted to do ... to give back like those people did to The Rev. Eldon J. Somers, a long-time my grandmother.” educator who wanted to further the And that’s just what the lives and careers of those who provided North East native has done him care while at Springhill, created since becoming a licensed a scholarship program at Mercyhurst practical nurse in 2009.

University. He died at age 98 in January.

She works as an L.P.N./ [CONTRIBUTED PHOTO] charge nurse at Springhill, a continuing care retirement community.“I can’t imagine working with anyone other than older people,” she said. “From the time you meet them until the time they pass away, you’re making them comfortable, putting a smile on their face, taking care of their wounds, holding their hand. ...They have such dignity. They appreciate you.”

Lupole never imagined that appreciation would translate into a lifechanging opportunity.The 31-year-old was recently named the first recipient of the Springhill Nursing Scholarship Program, a fund created through a gift from the Rev. Eldon J. Somers, a former Springhill resident. He was apriest in the Erie Diocese since 1951, worked as an educator and administrator at Cathedral Preparatory School, Gannon University and Clarion University of Pennsylvania until the age of 75.

Then, he worked another 20 years as an academic counselor at Mercyhurst University.

“Father Somers was a truly dedicated educator,” said Michele Wheaton, registrar at Mercyhurst University and a close friend. “He was an amazing human with a huge capacity to care. He believed everybody should have a chance to become educated and do something with his or her life.”

Somers died at age 98 on Jan. 3, just a few days before Lupole began as a part-time student in the Mercyhurst North East program that helps licensed practical nurses become registered nurses.

Lupole was just the kind of nurse that Somers had in mind, said Jim Schneider, executive director of Springhill, describing her as dedicated, compassionate and with great potential. “He would be delighted to know that she was the first person to take advantage of the opportunity,” he said.

Over the years, Somers often talked with Lupole about her life, encouraging the divorced mother of three to go back to school.He knew balancing a full-time job, family and finances could be an obstacle to going back to school. Creating the scholarship was his way to help the Springhill staff grow in knowledge and credentials, and improve their lives, Schneider said.

Quietly helping others was a part of Somers’ entire life. At Mercyhurst, he created a book fund to help students who couldn’t pay for their own. An avid reader, he donated more than 2,400 books from his personal collection to the Mercyhurst library.

“He was the sweetest man ... kind and caring, always thinking of other people,” said Lupole, who remembers how he’d always return from shopping trips with Werther’s candy for another resident.

Lupole, who spent the holidays preparing for the L.P.N. to R.N. bridge program by making up two courses online and taking an entrance exam, acknowledges going back to school is a lot of work. But she has a great support system —from her family in North East, and staff and residents at Springhill who ask about her classes and encourage her every day.

“After that test, I walked out with a huge grin,” she said. “I knew it was going to happen. I was going back to school and working toward the next phase of my life. It’s an opportunity of a lifetime.”

Friday, May 5, 2017

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Erie Times-News | GoErie.com

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Friday, May 5, 2017

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Erie Times-News | GoErie.com

Friday, May 5, 2017

Salute to An edition of the

Nurses

PART OF GATEHOUSE MEDIA’S

NURSES WEEK 2017

Nurses go above and beyond every day

By Kara Kubeja Knight, B.S.N. UPMC Hamot

The nursing profession represents a lifelong commitment to helping other people, and when someone becomes a nurse, they typically have a vision of assisting others and saving lives. It is something most medical professionals strive for each day.

To say that nurses are extraordinary heroes is an understatement. This profession requires selflessness, empathy, flexibility and a sense of humor. At UPMC, the DAISY award recognizes nurses who have gone above and beyond the call of duty to help their patients. I was humbled with this honor earlier this year after I arranged a wedding for a terminally ill patient and her longtime boyfriend.

With the help of my co-workers, we bought flowers, ordered a cake, found an appropriate wedding dress and veil and made a "just married" sign. I wheeled the patient down the hallway to the sound of Canon in D by Pachelbel.

Following the event, many asked me “what made you do that?” Without hesitation, I replied, “This is something that nurses do every day for our patients.”

This profession puts nurses in contact with people in some of the very worst times of their lives when they are at their most vulnerable. It really is human nature to want to lessen their pain and suffering. While we can’t change their circumstances, our compassion drives us to do all we can to make someone’s day a little easier. I witness my

UPMC Hamot nurses arranged a wedding for a terminally ill patient last fall. [CONTRIBUTED PHOTO]

co-workers doing this on a regular basis.

Rachel Boyer, R.N., cared for a patient in the ICU and followed up with that patient on her days off.

Boyer even came to visit her on Christmas Day. She helped the patient’s daughter celebrate her birthday with a prayer shawl and a slice of cake. Her bright personality and thoughtfulness really helped the Collection boxes were placed throughout the hospital campus.

“The council is thrilled to report that during our month-long book drive, we have collected nearly 2,000 new or gently used books for the Wayne

NURSES WEEK 2017

Nurses organize book drive for Wayne School UPMC Hamot’s Nursing Education Research Council (NERC) has been keeping nurses up-to-date on new policies, initiatives and issues within the industry for years. Last year, the 40-member group decided to initiate a community benefit project.

“We wanted to give back to the community,” said Selena Laufenberg, B.S.N., co-chair of the NERC. “UPMC Hamot contributes nearly $26 million in community benefits each year and involving our council in this effort seemed like the right thing to do especially with the tie to education.”

The NERC chose Wayne School based on UPMC Hamot’s existing relationship with the school and because the group wanted to offer help to children who could most use it. Hamot Health Foundation is the corporate sponsor of the community schools program at Wayne.

Before Christmas, the council asked all UPMC Hamot employees to collect Box Tops for Education, a program that provides cash to participating schools. The council also purchased backpacks, toiletries, hats, scarves and other school supplies to be distributed to students as faculty and staff deemed necessary.

“Our teachers use that funding for their classrooms and supplies such as tissues, crayons, and so on,” said Diane Sutton, Wayne School principal.

During the visit to the school over the holidays, council members learned that the library was in desperate need of books and tables. Many of the

books were outdated and in need of replacing.

UPMC Hamot donated extra, unused tables to the school for the library, and a book drive was coordinated involving all UPMC Hamot employees.

Don Niles, Wayne School librarian, left, and Diane Sutton, principal, far right, receive donated books from UPMC Hamot employees including Selena Laufenberg, Ann Marie Howell and Beth Mitchell from the Nursing Education Research Council. [CONTRIBUTED PHOTO]

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Contributed by UPMC Hamot

patient and the family through a very difficult time.

Wendy Brigham, R.N., was in a similar situation while caring for a patient on the neuro trauma unit.

The patient had an unexpected event that was terrifying to her and her family. Brigham took special care of the patient and went out of her way to celebrate a birthday, bringing the family a balloon and some chocolate. She was patient and reassuring as well as knowledgeable and informative.

Linda Sunberg, R.N., wasn’t even on duty when she witnessed a motorcycle accident and her nursing skills kicked in, prompting her to notify the victim’s family, all the while comforting the patient and reassuring the family.

All of us go above and beyond the call of duty for the same reason: because it is ingrained in us. We have a passion for what we do and no matter who we are or where we work, we connect with people and we want to provide the best experience we can for them.

Nurses are the backbone of health care; more often than not they are behind the scenes, spending 8 to 12 hours a day or more with a patient and consistently monitoring their well-being while considering the needs of the patient and family.

Nursing is a unique career that takes a special set of skills and an extraordinary level of commitment.

There are challenges and triumphs. Some days can be difficult, but those are offset by the camaraderie of the staff and the enduring commitment to people. Each person has entered into a nursing career focused on making a difference, which we continue to strive to do each day. library,” said Laufenberg.

The books were delivered in April. “The words thank you do not adequately express our gratitude,” said Sutton.

“With this gift we can offer quality literature to our students.”

“It’s gratifying to know that, not only did our staff respond in a big way to this book drive, but that we were able to significantly upgrade Wayne’s library for the benefit of the students,” Laufenberg said.

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Friday, May 5, 2017

Salute to An edition of the

Nurses

Friday, May 5, 2017

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PART OF GATEHOUSE MEDIA’S

NURSES WEEK 2017

NURSES WEEK 2017

Mother, daughter choose nursing careers

Nurses welcome chemotherapy patients

Contributed by Gannon University

Like mother like daughter is something you hear all the time, but in the case of Mindy Sandiff and her daughter Casey Proctor, the reverse is true.

Both are nursing students at Gannon University, and one followed the other there, but in this case, it was Sandiff who followed in her daughter’s footsteps.

Sandiff, 43, had a twoyear accounting degree and a couple of certificates in her educational background. Still, she wanted more.

“I was at Casey’s orientation at Gannon. I looked around the room at the incoming students,” Sandiff recalled.

“I thought, now that my kids are doing what they want to do, I’m going to do what I want to do.

When the session was done, Casey and I literally walked across the street to the admissions office to talk to the adult learners representative.”

She followed Proctor, 20, into the program in Gannon’s Villa Maria School of Nursing, a program her daughter

Mindy Sandiff, left, and her daughter Casey Proctor are in the nursing program together at Gannon University.

[CONTRIBUTED PHOTO]

had her eye on for some time. Proctor’s father had broken his back in an auto accident when she was younger. “He was in the hospital for weeks and had two spinal fusions,” Proctor said.

“Just seeing how the nurses interacted with my dad made me want to build that bond with patients and be there at their weakest point.”

Going through Gannon’s nursing program is giving Proctor some unexpected experience in that regard. “I like that I can help my mom when she’s struggling,” Proctor said. Her mother, while grateful for the support, acknowledges that doing so put her in an unfamiliar position. “I have always

been her cheerleader.

It’s backward, but when I complain that I’m too old and can’t do this, she encourages me,” Sandiff said. “I also know what Casey’s going through when she’s going through it, and I’m able to go through it with her.”

Happily, Sandiff can look to her daughter’s experience to show the way. Both mother and daughter are confident that they made the right choice by enrolling in Gannon’s rigorous nursing program.

“I’ve always wanted to show my kids — not just tell them —that there is nothing they can't do. I knew this was going to be hard but I want to show them that they shouldn’t quit,” Sandiff said.

and other staff members, was eager to ensure a smooth tranefore sition of care. They Septemdemonstrate their ber 2016, compassion and expert medical skills daily, letting our oncology patients know — withpatients in the Erie out a doubt —that they community received are our number one chemotherapy at concern. the Regional Cancer Each day, the team Center. Last fall, che- huddles to review motherapy services the day's scheduled were transitioned patients to ensure that between Erie's two each patient’s needs major local hospitals. are met, that their Patients, understand- medications will be ably, had anxiety delivered on time and about this transition. that all other needs The Saint Vincent are addressed. Every Hospital Infusion patient is scheduled Center planning team and preregistered was up for the chalbefore time, so all they lenge. Everyone was have to do is arrive. empowered to be a On many occasions, part of the workour patients walk in flow changes and and marvel at how the be creative with the team warmly greets care delivery process. them. It is obvious It was necessary to that they have already be ready to provide formed cohesive care for patients with bonds with their cancer, assuring patients. The nurses them of our expertise, epitomize teamwork organization, and every day. They work commitment to their together to obtain care and healing. vital signs, access In September, the medports, draw labs, Saint Vincent Infusion review medications, Team was completely get warm blankets and prepared for a patient offer meals. They even volume that was about have dog treats for our to triple. Each and patients with therapy every nurse, as well as dogs. our on-site pharmacist Not only do they

By Mary Beth Kroemer

Saint Vincent Hospital

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treat our patients with respect and dignity, they interact with each other the same way. That is why they are a true team. They are always looking out for each other.

They have created a very successful, warm and healthy work environment.

Their hard work and commitment is consistently evident in our patient satisfaction scores, well into the 90th percentile. The following are a couple examples of patient comments: “Very good first experience with getting chemotherapy.

All of the nurses were outstanding! The team atmosphere of the entire staff was the best that I have witnessed in any health care facility, whether at large, out-of-town, nationally recognized hospitals, or other hospitals in the immediate area,” and the “Staff remembers previous visits; they really like their patients.”

When nurses are thanked, their response is always the same. “This is what we do! We love our patients and they need us!”

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Salute to An edition of the

Nurses

PART OF GATEHOUSE MEDIA’S

full-time and working full-time.”

The Yahn family has displayed a strong commitment to Hamot for three generations, starting with Walter S. Yahn.

“Words will never be enough to express my sincere gratitude to Patricia Yahn and her family for their generosity and assistance to the nurses working at UPMC Hamot,” said Murphy.

Encouraging employees to seek advanced degrees is particularly important to UPMC Hamot, since continued education has been proven to equip

hospitals with the skills and expertise needed to give patients the best care possible. Hamot Health Foundation helps defray these educational

expenses by distributing more than 50 scholarships annually to UPMC Hamot employees.

In 2016, UPMC Hamot was awarded the prestigious Magnet® designation by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). Only 7 percent of hospitals in the country have reached Magnet status, and research shows that Magnet hospitals consistently provide the highest quality of care. While the ANCC does not require nurses to obtain advanced degrees to be considered for Magnet designation, the demanding standards of the award are most often accomplished by a staff of nurses with higher levels of education — like those at UPMC Hamot.

Content Expert Panel overseeing exam content and passing scores.

“The more I learn, the less I realize I know, so when you take the test, there are things you may not know even though you’ve worked in that area a long time,” Bryant says. “I look at my patient population and the skills that I need when I’m considering getting additional

certifications. It’s all about how can I better serve my patients.”

In addition, Bryant says that certifications validate a recognized level of specialty knowledge and clinical competence and offers nurses personal satisfaction in their abilities.

“Indeed, certification provides our patients with validation that the nurse caring for them

is an expert in their field and has achieved clinical expertise in their specialty,” says UPMC Hamot Chief Nursing Officer Jim Donnelly, R.N., B.S.N., M.B.A. At UPMC Hamot, Bryant is a charge nurse, an instructor in basic life support and advanced cardiac life support, and provides mentoring of new nursing students on the hospital’s sixth floor.

NURSES WEEK 2017

Yahn Scholarship helps student

Contributed by Gannon University

Gannon University nursing students put their classroom theory into practice thanks to an innovative program that serves residents of the Housing Authority of the City of Erie.

Lisabeth M. Searing, Ph.D., assistant professor in Gannon’s Villa Maria School of Nursing, staffs the center with students.

Together, they annually provide more than 1,000 direct services and referrals to other health and human service agencies. The services include on-site immunizations, health screenings, mammograms, health and nutrition education, home visits and on-site WIC (Women Infants and Children Supplemental Food Program) services.

“Students get to see patients in the environment that the patients come from. They see the challenges that their patients face and we

discuss them,” Searing said. “We talk about the style of apartments they live in, the neighborhood setting and issues with food security, things you might not think about with patients from other backgrounds.”

About 64 Gannon student nurses gain community-based clinical experience each semester. In addition, students studying pediatrics also gain valuable experience working with the large population of children, many of them from immigrant or refugee backgrounds.

Searing added that the students do assessments, provide immunizations, gather and analyze data and provide direct health education on topics such as what to eat if a resident has diabetes and how to live with hypertension.

They also visit residents in their apartments and help them establish relationships with primary care physicians. “I can help them call and explain why they should do so and the questions they need to ask,” she said.

For Michael Fraley, the Housing Authority’s deputy director, the center is about creating communities. “At the end of the day, it’s about people and how they feel

about their lives,” he said.

“One of the major reasons people do not have health care services is availability. If people need to take a bus to get a flu shot, the no-show rates will be high. Having the center means more people have better access to health care.”

The program is a joint effort between the authority and Gannon, and is centered on the authority’s John E. Horan Garden Apartments.

There the Gannon University Nursing Center is open two days a week during the academic year to provide screenings, preventive services and interactive programs that teach health and safety to families.

The center was established through a $65,000 grant from the Helene Fuld Health Trust, but is now funded nearly equally by the Housing Authority and Gannon University.

Fraley says the partnership has been a success.

“One of our goals is to bring people in to provide services in the neighborhood. Gannon nursing students take the time to talk to people. They make health care comfortable for the residents. We like our partnership with Gannon.”

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says Bryant. “Our patients are presenting with an increasing number of modalities which will require nursing staff to develop a higher level of critical thinking skills.”

Bryant has made this an area of focus in his own career by obtaining American Nursing Credentialing Association (ANCC) certifications in four areas of practice: medical/surgical nursing, cardiovascular nursing, gerontological nursing and pain management nursing.

He’s additionally certified in bariatric nursing and, most recently, as a Progressive Care Certified Nurse for working in the hospital’s intermediate care units. In addition, he has also had the opportunity to serve on the national ANCC Medical/Surgical

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Marc Bryant, B.S.N., R.N.-B.C., P.C.C.N., appreciates many similarities between his first career path and his current one in nursing.

As both a mechanical engineer working for International Paper in Erie before it closed in 2002, and as a UPMC Hamot nurse who works with critically ill patients, he thinks in terms of systems.

“My previous degree in mechanical engineering prepared me for understanding and applying structure and function to the human body,” Bryant says.

After re-evaluating his life goals, he says he took a leap of faith and returned to nursing school and graduated at the age of 49 with a bachelor’s degree from

Edinboro University.

Following graduation, he started as a floor nurse at UPMC Hamot in 2004.

That was more than 10 years ago and, now, with the distinction of holding the most certifications of all the nurses at UPMC Hamot with six total, Bryant is a leader who believes that the nursing profession is constantly changing and requires higher skill sets supported by certification, training and ongoing education to meet the rising expectation of patients.

“Nursing education must continue to support improved evidence-based standards of care to enhance patient outcomes and reduce health care costs in an increasingly challenging environment,”

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UPMC Hamot Administrator on Duty April Murphy was the recipient of a scholarship that enabled her to complete her masters in nursing administration last fall. [CONTRIBUTED

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NURSES WEEK 2017

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nursing education, the cost of graduate school became extremely overwhelming,” Murphy said.

But with the help of UPMC’s tuition assistance and generous donations from families like the Yahns, Murphy was able to complete her masters in nursing administration last fall.“This was extremely helpful for my family,” said Murphy. “We had a child heading to college at the same time that we were welcoming our youngest baby girl into the world — all while I was attending school

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During National Nurses Week, UPMC Hamot takes the opportunity to celebrate and thank its nurses, nursing assistants and technicians for the excellent care they deliver as a team. Together, this group is made up of more than 1,100 employees, making it the largest group of employees in the hospital by far. In many ways, they are the backbone of the hospital as they spend the most time with patients and their families.

The festivities of

Nurses Week will culminate in an event on Saturday, May 13, called Hamot Strong, which is a Hamot Health Foundation fundraising event and auction that aims to fund scholarships for employees seeking advanced degrees and training. Many of these scholarship recipients will be nurses.

April Murphy, M.S.N., R.N., an administrator on duty at UPMC Hamot, received the Patricia S. Yahn Scholarship last year to help with her graduate studies. “When I decided to further my

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Salute to An edition of the

Nurses

NURSES WEEK 2017

Nurses work toward

ADVANCED

DEGREES

N

urses start with differing degrees, and then they often return to classrooms later to add to their educational credentials after working in health care for years. Here are some observations from nurses taking classes at Mercyhurst University to advance their educations.

NURSES WEEK 2017

“Why I love what I do”

By Elise Wurst, R.N. Mercyhurst University (Saint Mary’s East)

I’m not a very touchy-feely type of person. I never have been. When I heard about therapeutic touch in my nursing classes, I cringed a bit. How awkward that would be, I thought.

But as I grew into my role as a new nurse, I realized just how naturally it comes. I find myself holding the hand of a resident while she battles anxiety, endures a painful procedure, or processes, again, that her life is coming to an end. Feeling the squeeze of someone who only hours earlier was practically a stranger, knowing that her fragile hand is still able to grip mine so tightly, I know that just my hand can convey so much.

With my eyes welling up with tears, I have been filled with an overwhelming sense of compassion, a deep connection with near strangers as our humanity surfaces.

I am filled with personal strength as I support another person, and yet I feel so helpless. There is only so much I can do. I cannot take her fear away. I cannot always allay the confusion or pain. But I am there, in that moment, and she tells me she is grateful.

Perhaps the most significant moment for me yet as a nurse was when I embraced a stranger, tears streaming down both of our faces.

Only an hour earlier I had held my stethoscope over her mother’s

chest, searching for a heartbeat, waiting for her chest to rise once more, convincing myself that any moment she would wake back up and look at me with the most expressive eyes. Now her daughter was here to say goodbye, one more time, and I held her tight and spoke of how grateful I was to have known her mother. I don’t know where my words came from. Her raw emotion touched me, the loss inciting a sense of grief and acceptance I had never known before. In the coming hours, I thought often of her mother. I thought of my own mother. I spent time silently standing in her now-empty room. And I knew that there was a reason I was a nurse. I knew that I would make a difference. I knew that even if all I could do was hold a hand, there was more meaning to my role than I had yet discovered.

I cannot say where my career will lead me, perhaps I’ll eventually explore other fields of nursing. I’m sure I won’t be on the floor forever.

But there will never be a replacement for the hands I’ve held, the lives I’ve known, the smiles I’ve evoked. For all the stressful evenings, for all the frustration, for all the backaches, and headaches, and missed hours of sleep, I wouldn’t give up those hands or those embraces. I can only hope that I’ve made a difference in their lives. Even a fraction of how deeply they have impacted me would suffice.

PART OF GATEHOUSE MEDIA’S

NURSES WEEK 2017

Nurse praises residency program

By Valerie Hardner, R.N. Mercyhurst University (Saint Vincent Hospital)

W

hen I started school in Mercyhurst University’s R.N./B.S.N. program, I knew I would love what I was doing.

Getting through clinicals and passing my boards increased that love even more.

The event that really set my passion and work ethic into overdrive was the opportunity to work with my Saint Vincent nurse preceptors, Theresa Craig, R.N., and Jeanine Prest, R.N. The Saint Vincent Nursing Residency Program — which is designed to help new nurses —provides new nurses with preceptors who serve as mentors and teachers.

Because I was only 20 when I started my first nursing job, I was super anxious and nervous and quite frankly, a mess. However, my preceptors really showed me the ropes.

On my very first day on the floor, I saw what it meant to care compassionately for your patients and what it meant to create a connection between you and the patient, one that goes beyond just being assigned to be his or her nurse for the day.

My preceptor inspired me to shape my work ethic in the same way hers is and has been for a long time.

Witnessing the relationship you can create with your patients —total strangers, at first —and being able to celebrate the little victories they have in their recovery was one of the best feelings I had ever discovered.

Even though I have moved on from that unit, I still loved every second of being a urology, bariatric, and general medical/surgical nurse and would not have wanted to start anywhere else. I still love what I am doing and continue to carry on creating the bond with my patients in a little bit of a different manner.

I love the pure fact that you can be a lifesaver, a shoulder to cry on, an advice giver, and a caregiver all in one person at the same time.

Partaking in the nurse residency program at Saint Vincent was a blessing and I discovered I was not the only one who felt this way. I was given the opportunity to meet other nurses who were both brand new to nursing and those who, like me, had no other job experience in health care. I was quickly able to form relationships with those in my class,

Valerie Hardner participated in a residency program at Saint Vincent Hospital that helped her expand her leadership opportunities. [CONTRIBUTED PHOTO]

giving me a familiar face to look for either on my own unit, or while I was going throughout the hospital.

The residency program also gave me the opportunity to form a support system, outside of my co-workers and new manager. I was able to form a relationship with individuals I felt comfortable with going to if I had an issue or was lacking self-confidence in a procedure or my knowledge to perform certain tasks that were required on my unit.

While learning how my new unit functioned during my scheduled shifts, I was also advancing my competencies in evidence-based practice, increasing my knowledge about being a patient advocate, having crucial conversations, focusing on patient-centered care, and expanding my opportunities for leadership in my residency classes.

The residency program has really allowed me to expand my leadership opportunities. Aside from attending classes for one year, we are required to complete a research project and present it to the leaders of the hospital. My project has come to the point that I am now running a pilot program on my original unit and will be taking new nurse residents under my wing to help me complete the pilot and expand their leadership skills.

Without the residency program, I would not have had the opportunity to both form very healthy relationships in my work environment that I can continue to follow back on, and I would not have had the opportunity to tap into the leadership skills I did not know I possess.

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NURSES WEEK 2017

Following in footsteps of mother, grandmother

By Michelle Billig Mercyhurst University

My grandmother was a nurse. My mother,Lynn Perry,is a nurse. I was NEVER going to be a nurse. I passed out at the site of my blood, and had near fainting episodes when anything would happen medically to my body. I was going to do anything in my power to avoid being just like my mother and grandmother. It worked well, until I got to college. I had no real drive for a major. I knew I wanted to help other people, but had no idea how to make that my major. Then it dawned on me, like a ray of sunshine shooting directly down from the heavens. I should be a nurse. I can have that as a career without the blood and guts ... right?

Now that I have 10 years of experience under my belt, I can better explain what drove me to become a nurse. It

Michelle Billig, right, is a nurse who is currently caring for her mom, Lynn Perry, who was also a nurse. [CONTRIBUTED PHOTO]

was the “trauma momma,” emergency room queen, chief flight nurse that I called mom.

No matter where we went in the

city of Erie, my mother always knew somebody. I mean, to the point of ad nauseam. I remember rolling my eyes and sighing loudly at every smiling face that greeted my mom. They would always say things like, “Your mom is the best nurse I’ve ever had” or “Your mom never stops smiling!”

“Geez mom, can’t we go anywhere without you knowing somebody?!”

Who knew that annoyance would become a big part of my aspirations as a nurse.

Originally I planned to avoid critical care. But, the calling came while in clinical rotation. I loved the emergency room. I went straight to the emergency room after school and never left. I know now that my drive is to be just like her. A great nurse who loves her job. A great nurse who cares about her patients. A great nurse who never stops smiling. A

Nurse’s family is important to success This may be simple when you have had a good day at work, but when you have a bad day, this can be There are two sides to nurschallenging. It is difficult to return ing: being taken care of by a nurse home and put the frustration of the and being the nurse taking care of difficult patient aside or the sadness patients. When you or your family of the patient that passed away, so member is the patient, you want the that you can be happy and enjoy the nurse to be compassionate as well time with your family. I think that as the best possible advocate. As the this is an often-overlooked aspect in nurse, you want to be both of those the nursing profession. Most people but you understand that you have to get to see some of what a nurse does emotionally distance yourself in order at some point in their life. Not as to maintain a level of objectivity and many people get to see the nurse mental stability, while still providing when they go home and interact the best possible care. After your shift with their loved ones. Many times has ended, you still have to go home this is where the true challenge of and be a spouse and a parent. being a nurse lies: making it to family

By Mike Korzeniewski

Mercyhurst University (Saint Vincent Hospital)

activities, playing with their children and maintaining social and family responsibilities.

If you know a nurse or other first responder, you may have a glimpse into what type of life they lead. If you are the spouse or child, then you know the challenges that they face as well as the challenges and sacrifices that you face. Not having loved ones home from 5 p.m. to 9 a.m. like many of your peers, holidays that are not always celebrated on the days that everyone else celebrates them.

Nurses Week should also focus on the nurse’s families who are the backbone of nurses both during their education and during their career.

Overcoming obstacles to return to school

By Linda Pietras Mercyhurst University (Saint Vincent’s Hospital)

I was asked to reflect on my own experience returning to school for my bachelor of science degree in nursing. Initially, I was very apprehensive at the thought after so many, many years. Would it be feasible?

With work, family and all the demands in life? Was it affordable? Would I be able to integrate into the modern classroom with just basic computer skills? Would I be able to keep up with the course work? Would I be the oldest student in the classroom? There were so many things to consider.

After much thought and a lot of encouragement from family, friends and co-workers, I took that giant leap of faith from everyone and

enrolled in the R.N. to B.S.N. program at Mercyhurst University last year. What I discovered were classes filled with other adult students sharing the same concerns as me about

academically and professionally.

Today, I see my own professional practice beyond care at the bedside.

I no longer have tunnel vision. I look beyond my own scope of practice and see the bigger picture of health care, legislation and reform affecting the quality of care and patient outcomes. Healthcare has changed tremendously over the last ten years and will continue to expand with technological advancements to medicine and health care legislative reform. Returning to school to obtain my degree at Mercyhurst University has been a rewarding and enriching lifelong learning experience. One of my most favorite Chinese proverbs states it best, “Even if one studies to an old age, one will never finish learning.”

“Even if one studies to an old age, one will never finish learning.” returning to school. It no longer seemed like such an impossible undertaking.

It has only been a year since I started my first classes but I feel I have grown and achieved so much

smile can enhance anyone’s day, and to have a nurse who smiles at you when you are in need is magical. Especially when that smile is genuine.

If I end my career anything close to my mother’s I will have reached my goals and more. She unfortunately has early onset dementia and was forced onto disability before the age of 60. I watch her smile at everyone still, even though her confusion is worse each week. My mother taught me how to be sympathetic and empathetic to those during their time of need. She taught me what it means to be meaningful to others. She taught me that just by smiling you can brighten someone’s day. She taught me how to be a nurse and raised me to be the woman I am today. Because of that, I can take great care of her in her time of need. Now, we get to smile together. That is why I love my job as a nurse.

Former patient draws on experience as nurse

By Anthony Diluzio Mercyhurst Univesrity (Saint Vincent Hospital)

The entire reason that I am a nurse, and currently in classes working toward my bachelor’s degree in nursing at Mercyhurst University, has to do with my own previous experiences within health care settings. Unfortunately, for my family and myself, we have spent more time than most in hospitals due to family health problems.

When I was 13 years old I was hospitalized in Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh. I had had an aortic dissection and was flown down to Pittsburgh after being seen in the emergency department at Saint Vincent Hospital.

I have few memories of the first two weeks. I do remember waking up in an unfamiliar room not knowing what happened. Overall, we spent more than a month in the hospital, which seemed like forever to me but, looking back, must have seemed like an eternity to my family. Later on we discovered a familial gene that was mapped through a multitude of families by the University of Texas. During my stay I encountered countless staff each as nice and personable as the last but the nurses were the ones who really had an impact on me and my family.

It is hard to put into words how I felt being surrounded by people that I didn’t know, yet still feeling feel safe and cared for. I decided after that stressful stay that I wanted to be as helpful, caring, and understanding as the nurses who helped us all through such a hard time. Over a decade later, I do not think about my time in Pittsburgh daily but every time I have a patient thank me or tell me how much they appreciate what I have done for them, I do think about the nurses that impacted my life.

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PART OF GATEHOUSE MEDIA’S

NURSES WEEK 2017

Nurse dedicated to Pleasant Ridge Manor

M

position of staff nurse to be scary and rewarding at the same time. As she gained more experience,

she held other positions at Pleasant Ridge Manor, including wound nurse, infection control nurse, and eventually as nurse manager for nine years.

In 2009 she was promoted to assistant director of nursing, and then to director of nursing in 2011.

Always wanting to continue learning, lead effectively and assure the highest quality of care for her residents, Venezia recently completed the nursing home administrator course and earned her nursing home administrator license.

Venezia holds no regret for having experienced her entire nursing career in one place, at Pleasant Ridge Manor. In fact, she says that she is grateful for having the opportunity to learn all of the different perspectives of nursing, and for learning firsthand how vital the input of nursing assistants is to the nurses, and even more so to the residents.

Her message to others is to never give up on your goals, as everyone can make a difference.

taught me integrity — that it was OK to make mistakes but that it was never all right to blame others for those mistakes, nor should you ever destroy someone else to save yourself. We were raised with the tribe mentality and my grandparents, aunts, uncles and other relatives all influenced the foundation of my character in the most positive of ways.

In addition to my family, I have met many mentors throughout my journey. Fellow students, mentors, colleagues and supervisors have all influenced me in so many different ways, each giving me the tools I needed to become an effective and competent registered nurse.

However, it is an experience I had as a 7-yearold child that has had perhaps the most profound effect on the way that I think about nursing and about my patients. In December of 1980, I was hospitalized days before Christmas with appendicitis. For me and for several of the longtime nurses on the pediatrics ward, it was like a homecoming for me as I had made frequent week-long visits there as an infant and toddler for recurring

respiratory issues.

However, it was the encounter of two third-shift nurses who stood over me with intimidation in the night following my surgery, threatening me with “shots,” that will forever remind me of how it feels to be on the other side of things. I never want to be that nurse who doesn’t understand what it is like to be afraid of what happens next. Instead, I will always strive to act out of compassion and understanding; to see the whole patient, from eyes that know what it is like to be afraid and unsure.

My nursing career has been as varied as my path to nursing. Penn State University is my alma mater for both my associate degree in nursing and my bachelor of science and I have worked at UPMC Hamot, 7 South; Pennsylvania Soldiers’ & Sailors’ Home; and am now at HealthSouth Erie. All of the lessons I learned through school and in practice have become an integral part of the nurse I have become.

I anticipate that I will continue to grow from every new experience, and I look forward to serving others through nursing for a long time to come.

By Pleasant Ridge Manor

My grandmother has a picture of me at 3 years old with a stethoscope, listening to the deep freezer.

Perhaps this was a sign of what I was to become, but there was no indication at that time that I would take many detours to arrive at that outcome. I do not regret any of the side streets that I took because the friendships I have gained have been invaluable and the young lives that I have influenced irreplaceable.

The path I have traversed has helped me develop into the nurse that I have become.

Throughout my life, my family has always encouraged me to “be whatever and whoever” I wanted to be. My mother instilled in me a strong sense of ethics and a thirst for education. My father

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By Adelheid (Heidi) Hinkler-Hazlett, R.N.

[CONTRIBUTED PHOTO]

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Nursing aspirations started as a child

Mary Kochera Venezia, director of Nursing, spent her career at one place - Pleasant Ridge Manor.

"!1/62573--

ary Kochera Venezia was graduating from Girard High School in 1984 without a clear plan. So she decided to follow in her mother’s footsteps and become certified as a nursing assistant at the Erie Vocational Tech School.

Soon after, she was hired as a nursing assistant at the Erie County Geriatric Center, soon to be called Pleasant Ridge Manor. She was pleasantly surprised to discover that she loved her job and loved the residents. A few years later, the spark to become a nurse was ignited; she enrolled in the Villa/Gannon nursing program, earning her associate degree as a registered nurse.

Venezia then accepted a position at Pleasant Ridge Manor as a licensed staff nurse. She recalls clearly that at this point, her goal was to one day become the director of nursing. She found her new

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Friday, May 5, 2017

Salute to An edition of the

Nurses

Friday, May 5, 2017

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PART OF GATEHOUSE MEDIA’S

NURSES WEEK 2017

Students participate in ‘Be the Match’ registry

I

Contributed by Penn State Behrend

t was a long shot, but Kaylee Boehme swabbed the inside of her cheek anyway, collecting her DNA for Be the Match, the national bone-marrow donation registry. Just one of every 430 volunteers is selected to donate.

“I really hope it’s me,” said Boehme, a Penn State Behrend second-year nursing student.

The chance of receiving a donation of bone marrow or stem-cell transplant is something many patients don’t experience. Though the procedure can cure more than 80 genetic diseases, including leukemia, 70 percent of all patients in need of a transplant do not have a genetic match in their family. Half never get a transplant.

To raise awareness of the issue, Penn State Behrend’s nursing students held a bone-marrow donor registry drive over four days in the fall semester. The average community event adds 25 volunteers to the donor database, according to the National Marrow Donor Program.

The Penn State Behrend event added 164.

College campuses are an ideal site for registry drives, according to the National Marrow Donor Program, which maintains the Be the Match registry. Donors’ blood type doesn’t matter, but their age does: Most transplant doctors prefer to work with donors between the ages of 18 and 44.

To register, volunteers answer a

Kaylee Boehme, a sophomore from Venetia, swabs the inside of her cheek during a bone-marrow donor registry drive organized by Penn State Behrend nursing students. [CONTRIBUTED PHOTO]

few questions and then use a cheek swab to collect a cell sample. For most, it takes no longer than voting.

“It’s a simple process, but it’s super-important,” said Samantha Stauffer, a junior who is pursuing her bachelor of science in nursing, or B.S.N., degree at Behrend. (The college also offers an R.N. to B.S.N. for associate degree-prepared nurses.)

“The more people we can sign up, the higher the chances are that we’ll be able to help somebody.”

Having student nurses participate in service-learning opportunities like Be the Match, Relay for Life and a March of Dimes walk fosters commitment to public service, says Kimberly Streiff, coordinator of Behrend’s nursing program. “The students look forward to these events every year,” she said. “They offer interesting paths for personal and

professional exploration, plus give them occasions to practice their skills in communication, collaboration and leadership.”

When nursing students host campus events, they also educate their peers about health care issues.

In the case of the bone-marrow drive, their efforts dispelled the myth that joining the national registry would be a difficult process.

“A lot of people think it’s a painful, invasive thing,” said Alison Walsh, a lecturer in nursing at Penn State

Behrend. “It isn’t. It’s a lot like giving blood.”

As she watched students register for the drive, Walsh thought of a patient she once worked with on a cancer ward, a woman who had leukemia and died before a donormarrow match was found.

“I think of her a lot,” Walsh said.

“She did everything we asked of her, but it wasn’t enough.

“I hope she’s looking down at us today,” she said. “I think this would make her smile.”

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Friday, May 5, 2017

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