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| Sunday, May 8, 2022
NURSES THE HEART OF HEALTHCARE
ROBERT JOHNSON
Globe Gazette
MercyOne North Iowa Medical Center
New ER nurse at MercyOne is grateful for learning opportunities MARY PIEPER
Special to the Globe Gazette
Robert Johnson decided to pursue a career in health care after working in the food service field, which included bartending. The Clear Lake resident is now applying his people skills to new his job as an ER nurse at MercyOne North Iowa. “I like to think of it as bartending with a few extra steps,” Johnson said. He and his fellow ER nurses interact with a varied patient population who are in various stage of their health journeys, according to Johnson. “It’s one of those jobs where no matter how bad the day is I at least leave knowing I helped people, so it’s very rewarding,” he said. When Johnson was looking to switch jobs and go into the health care field, he initially pursued a career in EMS before deciding to become a nurse. He began working as a tech in the ER at MercyOne three years ago while he was studying nursing at North Iowa Area Community College. After graduating as an RN last year, he began his new position as a nurse in September. Johnson said he loves being at Mercy because of its supportive work environment. He noted the other members of the ER team helped him make the transition to nursing. “They helped me with my confidence when switching careers,” he said. “It’s nice to be a nurse and be part of a group of people who all have the same goal and who all support each other.” He said his preceptors and those who trained him played a huge role in where he is today. During orientation at MercyOne, new nurses are exposed to different areas of the hospital. Johnson said this allowed him to see “all parts of the journey” once patients leave the ER. Johnson said he had a particularly good experience in pediatrics because it’s a population he’s not very familiar with as he doesn’t have kids. He said he learned how to keep these young patients calm and cooperative.
PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY MERCYONE NORTH IOWA MEDICAL CENTER
Robert Johnson Johnson was still in nursing school during the first COVID-19 surge in North Iowa. He said it impacted his education and training. During his clinical trials at Mercy when he was attending NIACC and his early days as a nurse, there were still a lot of COVID patients at the hospital. “It was pretty eye-opening to see just how sick people get,” Johnson said. “It was scary at first, but I work with a great group of peo-
ple that made sure I had what I needed for my own protection and to protect others.” He said he is thankful cases are now declining, noting it’s difficult to see people who were healthy before contracting the virus suddenly become very ill and suffer longterm outcomes. Miaka Tudor, a nurse and unit-based educator at MercyOne who played a part in Johnson’s orientation, said he “has been so
grateful for every learning experience he has been given.” Although Johnson hasn’t been a nurse for very long, he’s already had several patients write to him to thank him for the care he provided while they were in the ER, according to Tudor. “He just stands out,” she said. “He cares a lot. … He’s one of those people that you can’t not like.”