A Man of Many (Many) Hats Story by Melissa McCance | Photos by Synergy Studios
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self-described country boy who lives on a few acres outside of town, owns some farm animals, and enjoys being outdoors with his extended family, Randy Holland grew up in Jonesville and graduated from the Freedom Farm Christian School. He now holds the important position of Infection Control Officer at Hillsdale Hospital. Randy says he never considered the medical field as a career when he was growing up. After graduation, he moved to Texas for 10 years where he worked for Kroger, and, when he returned to Michigan, took a factory job. His wife had always wanted to be nurse and enrolled in the TAP program at the hospital. While helping her study, he discovered his enjoyed the coursework and enrolled, too. After completion, he worked nights as advanced personnel in the hospital. “At first I worked wherever I was needed, and then I was the monitor tech so I was in the CCU constantly.” In 2004 he began the prerequisite coursework for nursing school and received his associate degree in nursing from Kellogg Community College in 2010. Later that year he became the infection control officer at Hillsdale Hospital, receiving training from the head of laboratory services at Sparrow Hospital as well as doing a lot of self-education through the CDC and WHO. He joined the Association of Professionals in Infection Control & Epidemiology and in 2015 was certified in infection control practices through the Certification Board of Infection Control & Epidemiology which partners with the CDC for their testing process. This is a credential which is recognized globally. Along with his infection control duties, Randy became the ER manager in 2014. He held the dual positions until mid-2016 when he left the Hillsdale area for two years to work as a travel ER nurse. After returning to the community, he resumed the infection control job as well as becoming director of ancillary services. Randy took on a third job from mid-2018 to mid-2020 when he oversaw environmental services. The job of infection control officer involves a heavy work load of reviewing, recording, and reporting. Randy reviews all outpatient and inpatient cultures that go through the hospital lab including urinary, sexually-transmitted disease, blood, and wound to determine if anything communicable is present. For outpatient results, he reports as needed to the proper health agencies. For inpatients, he ensures that patients are informed, correct protocols are followed, and that the proper antibiotics are used where applicable.
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Randy reviews all inpatient records daily and is required to report to the CDC monthly. He notes especially when things like central lines, Foley catheters, and ventilators are being used. For central lines and Foleys, daily assessments regarding need are