Go Live or Go Home...and by the way Happy Halloween!

Our hospital has been working on the transition from paper medical records to electronic medical records for over a year and a half, and our GO LIVE! date was October 31. I was part of a group of employees appointed to be in charge of building the computer applications specific to our hospital's needs, and for training those who would be using the computers (basically everyone). We had to attend many classes, and between those classes we had much building to do. Everything that was being documented on paper needed a designated place to be documented in the computer system. Think of Microsoft Office. You know, there is Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook. Well, the program we are using has applications like that for medical people to use...only instead of four of them, there are about twenty-five of them. There is an application for lab, radiology, emergency room, operating room, registration, clinical care, therapeutic reporting, resource scheduling...to name a few.

So the project was massive. Many hours underground in the basement training room were involved, and many hours trying to catch up on our regular jobs that we had neglected so we could work on the project. The bottom line is, GO LIVE! was on Halloween, and so was the kids' costume parade at school. One of the hardest things about trying to balance career and motherhood is a day like this. I feel a little bit like a failure when I miss something that is a big deal to my kids. My mom was always there for everything. Always. I guess I wanted my kids to be able to say that.

But there is an upside. While it does not hold true hospital wide, the GO LIVE! went really well for me and my department. I saw tears, I heard profanity, and I witnessed my coworkers flocking to the coffee and Halloween candy. Not so much in Cardiac Rehab. Everything I needed to do for my patients worked like it was supposed to and it was easy and exciting! Yay! (I did not spread it around too much, though, because I did not want anyone at work to be tempted to beat me up!)

I had a small epiphany at home as well. I really didn't miss anything vitally important. As is our tradition, we trick-or-treated as a family on the eve of Halloween (it's the way Halloween has always been done in our tiny town). While I was not one of the classroom party moms this time, Madison took cupcakes to school for movie day with orange and black sprinkles. And we carved pumpkins. My hope is that they will remember the trick-or-treating. And the cupcakes and the pumpkins. My hope is that the one little parade when I wasn't there will fall right off of their radar. I mean, if you look closely, they don't really look traumatized, do they?

Let me count the ways.

I don't write often enough about my work. When health care comes up in conversation, the discussion tends to center around dollars. Deductibles and insurance premiums and copayments and EOBs. I have been working in this field for more than eight years now. I don't know if I have ever mentioned before how much I love my job. I wonder if I appreciate that enough. I get up in the dark, get kids up and ready for their day, and go to my workplace most weekdays. It is not always easy. To leave them, I mean. I sometimes feel that by trying to be a good mom and employee that I am only average at everything. I wonder how I would survive this whole process if I did not love my job.

When I was in college, I reached the point in which I had to choose my specialty. I had taken all of the prerequisite courses and core sciences, and I could not go forward until I decided whether to go into nursing, teaching, business, or some type of therapy or leisure management. I loved the idea of cardiac rehab. All of my grandparents struggled with cardiac issues when I was younger, and I had an epiphany. Every patient that enters into cardiac rehab is someone's grandparent. Or maybe an aunt or uncle or sibling or spouse. You know that song by Brad Paisley? To the world you might be just another girl, but to me you are the world? These patients would be somebody's world, and I would treat them how I would treat my own grandparents. Or parents. You get the idea. So I chose cardiac rehab. I knew it was a field I would always be interested in, but I did not anticipate all of the ways I would be blessed by this career. Let me count the ways.

*I got to interview multiple applicants and choose the nurse I wanted to work with full time. I had a list of interview questions and qualities I wanted to find in my cardiac rehab nurse. Who gets to do that? So I went with my gut. I hired someone who I felt was qualified, dependable, and kind. Would you like to guess how that worked out for me? She has been working with me for five years now, and has become one of my best friends on the planet. I LOVE her! She gets all of my jokes and rarely makes fun of me for them.

*Most of my patients are wise. I get to collect advice from people who have been where I am right now. When I was considering baby #3, I was concerned the baby would take away from the older children. One of my ladies told me, "Oh, Honey, but think of the joy and love the new baby will bring to them!" They encourage me to forget the laundry in favor of playing outside, or to take more vacations, even if I have to pinch some pennies to get it accomplished. Oh, and they share recipes! Lots of them. They tell me things like, "Authority is like a bar of soap. The more you use it, the less you have left." They tell me, "If I had known I was going to live this long, I would have taken much better care of myself!" Without exception, they tell me to spend more time with my children. I have been so inspired by the life lessons they bring with them that I have started an official notebook of quotes!

*I have banker's hours. I'm not going to lie about it. Nobody wants to come in and exercise in a hospital in the middle of the night, or on weekends or holidays...which means I don't work at those times! I offer 3 exercise days per week, but the program is flexible enough that I can move days around if I need to for my patients to be able to celebrate the holidays with their families. This means I get to be home for all of the really big holidays. I may not get summers off along with lengthy Christmas breaks like all my teacher buddies, but in the hospital setting, sticking to weekdays is pretty special!

*A patient spends three months in my program. That means I get to know them. That means I get to watch them go from struggling to make it to 7 minutes on the treadmill on the first day to walking 40 minutes without difficulty towards the end of things. That is one of my favorite things.

*I get to wear scrubs or exercise gear to work. Imagine enjoying your workday in the comfort of your pajamas, with a stethoscope hanging around your neck. That's me.

I am not saying things are always peace, love, and sunshine. We have had to fly patients out before. Sometimes we may have to load a patient up in a wheelchair and push him directly to the ER and call his wife to come and be with him. Piles of paperwork must be done, and classes and meetings must be attended. But most of the time, at the root of it all, somebody's world comes in to our program, and when they leave us they have improved. That's all I'm saying.

Published

About once a year my boss' boss asks me to write an article for the local newspaper. OK, the call actually comes from my boss' boss' secretary. The hospital has a monthly column and the CEO chooses the authors he would like to fill it. I have written four of these articles previously, and each one reads like a research paper. Facts and statistics and diagnosis qualifications and phone numbers. They are articles that make me yawn, but in my little mind that is what "news" is. Facts and figures. My mom is not into numbers, but I usually saved a copy for her anyway. Just the very mention of the word "published" lights her up. This time I decided to do something different. I decided to be more personal. Partially because they only gave me a few days notice that my article had to be moved up a month to trade with someone, and partially because I think blogging is building my confidence as a writer and maybe I feel like I have my own ideas without having to constantly reference someone else. And Lord knows I always have 500 words to say. So, here goes:

Seven years ago, Pershing Memorial Hospital was faced with a decision. The cardiac rehab program could no longer be located in the Marceline facility. Hospital administrators had to decide whether to close the program or attempt to relocate. Thankfully the hospital chose to maintain its commitment to the community and continue providing cardiac rehab. The decision was made to move the program to Brookfield, to the west lobby of the hospital. Patients were able to get the care they needed without having to travel far from home. Directly following the move to Brookfield, I came to work for the hospital to coordinate the cardiac rehab program. Over time we were able to work with the respiratory department to initiate a pulmonary rehab program as well. We hoped to reach even more community members by providing this additional service locally.

Cardiac and pulmonary rehab involves supervised and monitored medical care that uses exercise and education to help people with cardiovascular and pulmonary illnesses. Anyone who has suffered from heart attack, angina, bypass surgery, stent placement, heart valve repair/replacement, or heart transplant is eligible for cardiac rehab. Candidates for the pulmonary program can include anyone whose activities are limited by lung disease and shortness of breath. Participants receive individual treatment plans to accommodate their specific goals. Monitored activity, along with support from patients with similar backgrounds, provides an experience that cannot be duplicated in your average gym.

Three years after our move to the west lobby, the hospital was on the brink of an exciting building renovation plan. The cardiac and pulmonary rehab programs were facing a new dilemma. Once again the programs would have to move or be closed. The programs were located where the new building was to be attached to the existing hospital. Between the continued commitment to community and a generous donation by Jessie Fay and Clifford Applegate, the hospital was able to purchase the Applegate Medical Building. The Applegate Medical Building was only a temporary location to help patients while we anticipated the completion of the hospital building project, but cardiac and pulmonary rehab remained intact.

Another three years went by until last February, when we completed our third and final move in time for Pershing Health System’s grand opening. You may be familiar with the new hospital lobby and all of the brand new departments and equipment that came with the building project. You may not realize that across the hospital you will find cardiac and pulmonary rehab. What was formerly the x-ray area has been completely renovated. The new, improved facility, with nearby patient parking, is the perfect location for our patients. The spacious exercise room offers a variety of exercise equipment, and we are within close proximity to ample medical personnel in case of emergencies. Our exercise physiologist and registered nurse supervise patient exercise sessions and provide education as needed.

I would like to thank all of our patients. Thank you for your gracious understanding and adaptability throughout our relocations over the years. I want you to know we have no intention of packing up our equipment again! Rest assured that cardiac and pulmonary rehab are here to stay.