2022 Cedar Valley Nurses

THE COURIER HONORS THE 2022 TOP

CEDAR VALLEY

NURSES

SUNDAY, MAY 8, 2022 |

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| Sunday, May 8, 2022

Thank you

to our nurses, who make a difference each day.

“

Working with this population makes me happy. I can honestly say that I love my job. It’s so much more than a nurse.

I’m their friend. We’re a family.

I really love working here.

– Meghan Joens, RN

”

WesternHomeCommunities.org/careers

TOP 10 NURSES 2022

Sunday, May 8, 2022 |

Courier honors nurses Winners will be feted at a May 10 luncheon MELODY PARKER

melody.parker@wcfcourier.com‌

Nursing is an essential profession that requires skill, knowledge, dedication and commitment to providing exemplary service in caring for patients. Cedar Valley nurses are on the front lines each day, displaying compassion, empathy, resilience and grace.

The Courier is celebrating the Cedar Valley’s Top Nurses for the fourth consecutive year.

For 2022, 15 extraordinary nursing professionals,

including a Reader’s Choice winner who was the top vote-getter, have been selected. These 15 nurses have gone above and beyond the call of duty for patients in their care.

This week through May 12 is being celebrated as National Nurses Week to honor the strength, dedication and perseverance of nurses in the field. Nurses are being recognized for their impact in nearly everyone’s life, and the public is encouraged to express their gratitude by sharing kind words and appreciation for the work they do 24/7, 365 days a year. National Nurses Day is May 6.

International Nurses Day is celebrated around the world every May 12, the an-

niversary of Florence Nightingale’s birth. This year’s theme is “Nurses: A Voice to Lead – Invest in Nursing and respect rights to secure global health.”

Last year’s winners came from every corner of the nursing field, representing local hospitals, nursing homes, clinics and more.

That is true again in 2022, as well.

Two longtime nurse educators had the daunting task of sifting through the nominations to select the winners. Shawn Buhrow, nurse educator with American Sentinel University, and Kendra Williams-Perez, dean and professor at Allen College, graciously volunteered to select this year’s

Traci Hewitt

top Cedar Valley nurses. The Courier is grateful for their expertise and professionalism in choosing the 2022 winners.

The Courier is pleased to announce the 2022 Cedar Valley Top 15 Nurses: Emily Babinat, UnityPoint Health Allen HospitalCommunity Cancer Center.

Traci Hewitt, MercyOne Waterloo Cancer Treatment Center.

Chelsea Kullen, Bickford Assisted Living of Cedar Falls.

Betty Marshall, UnityPoint Health-Allen Hospital, People’s Choice winner.

Julie McCleeary, UnityPoint Internal Medicine North Crossing and UnityPoint Clinic LGBTQ.

Roberta Murray, Western Home Communities.

Judy Owen, UnityPoint Health-Black Hawk Grundy Mental Health Center.

Crystal McCarty Peters, MercyOne Waterloo Medical Center.

Shawn Pierce, Arlington Place, Grundy Center.

Wendy Potter, Peoples Community Health Clinic.

Cindy Powell, UnityPoint Health-Allen Hospital.

Claudia Robinson, Black Hawk County Health Department.

Jennifer Sherrets, NewAldaya Lifescape.

Crystal McCarty Peters

Laura Skillen, Cedar Valley Hospice.

Yolanda Wilson, MercyOne Waterloo Medical Center.

Again this year, the Cedar Valley Top Nurses will be honored at a May 10 luncheon beginning at 11:30 a.m. at the Diamond Event Center in Cedar Falls.

There will be a program and video presentation, hosted

by Courier General Manager David Adams.

Tickets are $15 each, available by calling 319-291-1478, or online at go.wcfcourier. com\nursesluncheon.

Yolanda Wilson

Congratulations to our MercyOne Top Nurses in the Cedar Valley

Happy National Nurses Week!

Thank you to ALL of our MercyOne nurses for your continued dedication to transforming the health care of the communities we serve.

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Passionate about health care?

Find your calling and apply today at MercyOne.org.

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| Sunday, May 8, 2022

TOP 10 NURSES 2022

EMILY BABINAT

She treats cancer patients ‘as if they were her family’

META HEMENWAY-FORBES

newsroom@wcfcourier.com ‌

WATERLOO — When Allison Ramaker’s father underwent cancer treatment at UnityPoint Community Cancer Center in Waterloo, she felt comfort in knowing he was getting state-of-the-art medical treatment The family found a whole other level of comfort and care in nurse Emily Babinat.

“Emily is an outstanding nurse at UnityPoint Community Cancer Center. Nobody wants to go to the cancer center, but if these patients have Emily Babinat as their nurse, the patient is at ease. She is a very passionate, knowledgeable, loving and caring person. She treats her patients as if they were her family.”

Ramaker was so impressed with Babinat that she nominated her for a Cedar Valley Top Nurse award. Babinat is among 15 nurses this year to receive the honor from the Courier.

“My dad was there for chemotherapy for his cancer, and she made him feel at ease and told him that things are going to be OK and helped him get through it. My dad graduated from chemo and she was there with him when he rang the bell! He loved her as a granddaughter.”

Babinat was surprised to learn she’d been nominated, and even more shocked to learn she’d been chosen as a 2022 Top Nurse.

“I had no idea,” she said, laughing.

It’s that laughter and light-heartedness that Babinat’s patients appreciate most, her colleagues say.

“All of our nurses have something unique and special. They are amazing with patients,” said UPH Cancer Center Clinic Administrator Betsy Robertson. “But what sets Emily apart is she just has that personality that’s able to bring joy. She makes heavy things light. She’s funny. She’s empathetic with patients. She listens to them.”

Babinat, 28, began her post-secondary education as a business major at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls. It just didn’t sit right with her. “I didn’t feel like that was something I could do that would help people,” she said.

She switched paths and became a certified nursing assistant. Stints as a CNA at Ravenwood Speciality Care and NewAldaya Lifescapes in Cedar Falls solidified her belief that she’d made the right decision.

Babinat went on to earn her licensed

CHRIS ZOELLER COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

Emily Babinat practical nurse degree at Hawkeye Community College and a bachelor of science in nursing degree from the Des Moines Area Community College online program.

She worked on the medical/surgical floors at hospitals in Dubuque and Des Moines for a time before she and her husband Adam returned to the Cedar Valley.

For the last three years, she’s been an adult oncology nurse. It’s tough — but gratifying — work, she explained.

“You see patients in their worst times.

This is a situation nobody ever wants to be in. If you can make patients in a situation like that feel comfortable, that’s really rewarding. You’re talking about one of the scariest moments of their life, and to be able to provide comfort and assurance no matter what the outcome is has been really eye-opening.”

Building relationships with cancer patients is a priority. That goes a long way, Robertson said.

“You are a part of their support system.

You have to go to the next level here. Patients come frequently so we make it a priority to know little things about their lives — how many grandkids they have, that they’re planning a trip to Hawaii. All of those things. They need to know we are taking an interest in their lives, not just their medical journey.

“Emily really exemplifies all of that. She is so good at figuring out which patients have a playful personality and she’ll go down that road with them and connect on that level.

That’s why a lot of our patients love her. I just appreciate her, and I’m so glad she’s a part of this team. We need her light.”

The light goes both ways, Babinat said.

Her patients have given her plenty of light and wisdom, too.

“One thing I’ve learned, especially in this field, is that positivity goes a long way.

I’ve learned that through patients undergoing chemotherapy. They always have optimism. It takes weeks — sometimes months — of treatment. It’s hard on them.

It wears them down. Cancer has always been a battle, and it’s a victory to complete chemotherapy. But they do it with a positive attitude. Oncology is where my heart is. This is the best field I’ve ever been in.”

Outside of work, Babinat and her husband are bicyclists with plans to ride RAGBRAI this year. “Ride” is a strong word, she said, laughing once again. She plans to drive an RV while he rides the full route.

“My husband is really into biking. Let’s just say I’ve been trying to bike with him.”

TOP 10 NURSES 2022

Sunday, May 8, 2022 |

TRACI HEWITT newsroom@wcfcourier.com ‌

WATERLOO – Waterloo native and East High graduate Traci Hewitt initially thought she wanted to be a doctor.

“When I started at (the University of) Iowa, I was actually premed. I wanted something science-oriented, medicine-oriented. But I saw the differences between doctors and nurses, and I knew I didn’t want to be on call all the time and making those heavy decisions, so I decided to go the nursing route. I knew it was the right decision for me.”

Hewitt returned to Waterloo to attend Allen College and pursue a bachelor of science in nursing degree. During her junior year of college, Hewitt was trying to hone in on a specialty when she was told about an opening in the medical oncology unit.

“I always say I didn’t choose oncology. It chose me,” she said.

In 1996, after a stint working in a busy unit in Kansas City, Hewitt came home to work in a private practice with Dr. Mukund Nadipuram.

“Everyone knows him as Dr. Nadi,” Hewitt said.

The following year, Nadipuram left the practice and joined Covenant (now MercyOne).

“He asked me to go with him, and I’ve been there ever since,” Hewitt said.

“We’ve grown from a practice of four to now having close to 25 or 30 employees.

It’s interesting to see how the Christmas cards have changed.”

Currently, Hewitt works at the MercyOne Waterloo

Cancer Treatment Center.

She has been an oncology certified nurse since 1997.

“I am a chemotherapy infusion nurse,” she said.

“I check dosages, give premeds either orally or through an IV. I give a full head-to-toe assessment on every patient. Sometimes we can catch things the doctor didn’t encounter.”

Hewitt said she also focuses on patient education. All new patients starting treatment visit with a chemotherapy nurse who explains the treatment regimen, side effects and reasons to notify the office.

“We always try to treat everyone as our own,” she said of her patients. “We have a lot who come in angry at their diagnosis, angry at their treatment.

It can be so overwhelming.

We try to offer a little trust and reassurance to reinforce they are in the right place and making the right decision.

“I’ve treated a lot of friends and, unfortunately, family members — and even some patients who have become friends.

“And I love my co-workers,” she said. “We have a fantastic team, from the doctors and nurses, nurse practitioners to the lab and front desk. We all work together.”

Hewitt’s colleague, Dana McDougall, nominated her for Cedar Valley Top Nurses honors.

“Traci has been an oncology nurse for 20-plus years. During that time, she has had a positive impact on numerous lives. She is caring, compassionate and knowledgeable. Traci puts her patients’ needs first and always offers support. Traci

Work is meaningful for oncology certified nurse

“

All we could do is try to continue our care.

CHRIS ZOELLER COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

Traci Hewitt is an excellent nurse who continues to change lives daily,” McDougall wrote.

“It hasn’t always been easy. The last few years have been very challenging.

Working through the pandemic was unlike anything I have gone through. With the staffing issues, taking care of patients, dealing with the rules of what we can do and what we can’t do.

“All we could do is try to continue our care,” Hewitt said. “We would have four or five people out with COVID, but we would find a way to make it happen.”

“In addition to her role as an oncology nurse, she also serves on MercyOne’s Breast Program Leadership Committee, assisted with the conversion to electronic health records and has been instrumental in training new oncology nurses,” McDougall continued.

Hewitt praises Nadipuram for his mentorship,

along with others she has encountered throughout her career.

“Don’t show me how; tell me the why. I have to put those things together in my mind.”

She is now a mentor.

“Learn to be resilient, and learn to stand up for yourself,” Hewitt advised new nurses. “You can learn from so many situations.

Take in the experience of everyone around you. That can be physicians, nurses, the pharmacist, even the kitchen workers. Soak in all the knowledge.”

For Hewitt, the fight against cancer is a very personal one.

“Unfortunately, I treated my mom, who is my best friend, and my father-inlaw. Losing them has been extremely difficult – one very early in my career and my mom just few years ago.”

But the successes outweigh the losses.

“I had a patient, mid20s, married with a couple of young kids. Over

“

HOLLY HUDSON HILL

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the course of treatment, we became friends. Being able to watch that family and those relationships grow and know I participated in that – that’s very special.

“I’ve had patients come up to me in the street and say, ‘Hey, she saved my life.’

“I get asked a ton ‘how do you do what you do?’

No, we don’t save everyone, but we do save a lot.

“You know what you’re doing is meaningful.”

w

CONGRATULATIONS SHAWN PIERCE FOR BEING AN OUTSTANDING NURSE!

Assisted Living & Memory Care 95 D Ave. | Grundy Center, IA 50638 319-824-5674 ArlingtonPlaceRetirement.com

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TOP 10 NURSES 2022

CHELSEA KULLEN

Called to nursing by her faith and care for others

META HEMENWAY-FORBES

newsroom@wcfcourier.com ‌

CEDAR FALLS — A deep, abiding faith brought Chelsea Kullen to the nursing profession. That faith guides her care and compassion for Bickford Cottage residents and their families, she said.

“I’ve always felt like that was the calling that the Lord put in my heart. The Lord has blessed me, given me the gifts of wanting to care for people and be with them in the joyous moments and walk beside them in the hard times as well.”

Kullen, 26, is the registered nurse coordinator for Bickford Cottage, an assisted living facility. She previously was a nurse in the cardiac unit at UnityPoint-Allen Hospital in Waterloo for 2 1/2 years. She graduated from Allen College in 2016 with a bachelor’s of science in nursing.

Kullen was surprised to learn she had been named a 2022 Cedar Valley Top Nurse, and is quick to credit family and current and former colleagues for her success.

“My family and friends have been such a huge support system. My husband — we’re high school sweethearts — has been by my side through it all. Through the demands of nursing, he stuck right along with me and pushed me. On the days I wanted to throw in the towel, he was there.”

She also gives credit to her former coworkers at Allen. “Everyone deserves credit for the journey I’ve been on so far. They all taught me something along the way.”

At Bickford, Kullen coordinates care for its residents and makes sure families are included in those plans. She handles care plans, resident assessments, medication management and doctor referrals.

Kullen worked as a certified nursing assistant at Bickford during nursing school, and welcomed the chance to return to help care for its elderly residents, many of whom have dementia.

“They just have taught me so much. I really love hearing their stories and life lessons. Me being pregnant right now, they care so genuinely for me. Their wisdom helps me in my day to day, and it’s a blessing to be able to walk through their lives with them,” she explained.

Ashlyn Jungwirth, who nominated Kullen for a Top Nurse award, said she is regarded in the Bickford community by “co-workers, employees, colleagues and patient’s families and friends to give 100%

CHRIS ZOELLER COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

Chelsea Kullen of her heart to properly care for her patients. She is known to create strong relationships with her patients and their loved ones which allows Chelsea to understand her patient’s entire health and well-being on a deeper level. She treats each patient as if it were her own family member — with love and immense decency for who God created them to be.”

Kullen said good relationships with residents’ families are critical for good care.

“For a lot of them, it’s their parents here we’re caring for,” she explained.

“They know them the best and they are trusting us to take over their care. We tell them, ‘This is your time to be the son or the daughter and let us carry the care of the dementia.’ We like to take that off their shoulders. They’re trusting us to be the sole caregiver for someone who is near

and dear to them, and we’re deeply committed to doing that.”

That was especially important when COVID-19 hit the Cedar Valley in 2020.

Kullen rejoined Bickford in March that year, right as the pandemic swept in.

“We were trying to figure it all out when none of us knew how anything worked,” she said. “It was just jumping all in and knowing when their family members couldn’t be here, we could. I had to trust and put it in the Lord’s hands.”

Jungwirth said Kullen jumped in with both feet and led the team through it, and continues to demonstrate compassionate leadership and gratitude on a daily basis.

“Chelsea has worked tirelessly to ensure Bickford of Cedar Falls is appropriately set up each day to successfully care for the residents mentally, physically, emotionally,

and spiritually, so each family can continue to trust Bickford to care for their loved ones while they at times could not have physical contact with their elderly loved ones,” she said.

Kullen and her husband, Sam, have a 2-year-old daughter, Riley. At the time of this writing, the couple also were expecting a baby boy, due May 5. They have a chocolate Labrador retriever, Yadi, and are big fans of the St. Louis Cardinals. They enjoy spending time with family and friends and being outdoors, and are volunteers at their church, Sent Church in Cedar Falls.

“While her hands are full outside of work with family, friends and community involvement, her patients and employees know she will be there at the drop of a hat to help them in any way they need,” Jungwirth emphasized.

TOP 10 NURSES 2022

GREENSHOOT MEDIA

F

or nearly every indicator, the American Nursing Association says, America’s nurses are less healthy than the average American.

They’re more likely to be overweight, stressed out and tired. Workplace violence, injuries on the job and the 24/7 demands of the health care environment push many nurses to the breaking point.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics says that registered nurses have the fourthhighest rate of injuries and illnesses that result in days away from work when compared to all other occupations. Yes, even lumberjacks.

To improve the health of America’s 4 million registered nurses, the ANA launched the Healthy Nurse, Healthy Nation movement five years ago. Its mission is to connect and engage nurses and organizations to help nurses get more exercise, rest, nutrition, a better quality of life and be more safe on the job. It’s a free

SUNDAY, MAY 8, 2022 |

program, open to everyone in the industry.

There are more than 230,000 participants and more than 580 partner organizations.

It was particularly vital during the COVID-19 pandemic, which tried nurses’ health like never before.

“We encourage employers, professional associations and schools of nursing to share and amplify the vital

HNHN resources that help nurses combat burnout, manage stress and overcome trauma,” ANA President Ernest J. Grant, RN, FAAN, said. “Together, we can ensure our nursing workforce is at its peak health and wellness.”

One of the things the program does is to match nurses with mental health resources,

A Healthy Work

Environment

‘Nurses’ physical and mental well-being have never been more important’

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offering things like a free subscription to Headspace PLUS and other apps to improve the mental health and resilience of nurses across the country. It also organizes challenges for nurses to participate in for healthy eating, exercise and more.

“Nurses’ physical and mental well-being have never been more important — to the profession and to every one of us who counts on nurses for health care and leadership,” said Kate Judge, executive director of the American Nurses Foundation.

Matthew S. Howard is a nurse who participates in the HNHN challenge. He said he walks the dog and connects with family and friends regularly, even virtually, to improve his well-being.

“A healthy mental lifestyle is so important to me right now,” he said.

Sonya L. Clayton, another participant, said she carves out quiet time to help her mental health.

“At night, I try to have at least 30 minutes of quiet time reading or doing something calming,” she said. “I also talk to my prayer partner every day, and that connection is so reassuring.”

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TOP 10 NURSES 2022

BETTY MARSHALL

People’s choice nurse ‘brightens the world that surrounds her’

HOLLY HUDSON HILL

newsroom@wcfcourier.com ‌

WATERLOO – Betty Marshall’s love of nursing comes naturally.

“My grandmother was a nurse, my sister, my aunt,” she said. “It’s in my blood. I really looked up to them.

“My first experience with nursing was as a volunteer in the nurse’s office at West Junior High School. I really enjoyed that.”

Marshall graduated from West High School and went on to Hawkeye Technical College.

“I also volunteered at MercyOne – old Covenant – taking pictures of the babies.

I was always in the nursing environment.

It was a good option for me.

“I got my RN and started at Allen Hospital in 1992,” she said. “I was born there, and I’ve worked my whole career there.

Marshall started in surgical intensive care at Allen, now UnityPoint Health-Allen Hospital. “I’ve never looked for another job. I never wanted to leave,” said Marshall, who is one of the Courier’s 2022 top nurses and the people’s choice winner.

Marshall mentions Linda Benson and Marilyn Huber as being instrumental in mentoring her. I owe a lot to them. I’ve said that to their kids. ‘Your mom taught me everything I know.’”

After considering her options – “There are so many areas to choose from.” – Marshall landed in ambulatory outpatient surgery.

Marshall does pre-admission screening.

Alana Harter wrote in nominating Marshall for Top Nurses honors, “She has mentored many students over the years, served on internal committees, led EPIC training and so much more. I endlessly meet former patients and co-workers who tell me about their experiences with Betty. I am always thrilled to bring up her name, because I know only positivity will follow.”

Marshall has served as a preceptor, a mentor, for Allen and Hawkeye students.

She l was also instrumental in switching the hospital to electronic health records through the EPIC system and helped develop the career ladder at Allen.

“It is an advancement tool that is still in place today,” she said. “It takes into account volunteering, special projects, schooling and other things to determine monetary bonuses and raises in pay. I was on the original committee. It has been in place at Allen for about 15 years. We wrote the book.

CHRIS ZOELLER COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

Betty Marshall We wrote the rules.”

Marshall also serves on the staff-nurse council that addresses the concerns of staff, communication between units, etc.

Marshall credits her current management team, Joyce Meyer and Heather Randall, with being open and transparent.

Through her long career, Marshall said there a lot of experiences that stand out to her.

“Working nights in the ER during the flood,” she said. “Seeing my mom’s heart beating outside of her chest during her open-heart surgery that I observed. I’m not sure many people can say that.”

And of course, Marshall will not soon forget the experience of working through COVID. “Protocols could change within an hour.

It was hard keeping up with the CDC. During COVID, visitors weren’t allowed. One 90-year-old lady was all alone. The hospital bought iPads so patients could communicate with their families. I was there while she was waking up and I was covered

from head to toe in PPE (personal protective equipment). Her little husband was so excited to see her, but he didn’t know how to run the iPad and didn’t have any volume.

His wife was pointing to the volume button. He finally got it and said, ‘I love you, honey. I miss you.’ That touched my heart.

“It was such a hard time for everyone,” Marshall said. “You didn’t know if you were exposed. You didn’t know if you had it on you and took it home to your family. People didn’t want to be around you. Hopefully we see an end to it and learn to live with it in a non-pandemic state.”

“Betty is the type of person you never forget and immediately feel comfortable with,” Harter continued. “She sees the good in people and helps them see that same goodness. Betty brightens the world that surrounds her and is a blessing to so many.”

Marshall is just as dedicated to her family.

“Betty raised two young children while attending nursing school in hopes to pro-

vide the best possible life for her family.

In return, she has been blessed with five grandchildren she devotes her life to,” Harter wrote.

“Those are my angel babies,” Marshall said of her grandchildren. Son, Jacob Bates, has two children, Zander and Remington; and daughter Kristy Hammargren has three children, Bella, Jace and Riley.

“It’s been a very fulfilling career. Nurses are very supportive of each other. We’re a different type of people. One minute you can be packing a chest wound and the next you’re going to lunch like nothing happened.”

Marshall said she started crying on learning about being nominated for the nursing honor.

“I am one who likes to build other people up. I didn’t expect to win anything for doing something I love to do. I feel very blessed. It is a great honor, but I honestly feel it is the whole team. All nurses need to be honored.”

TOP 10 NURSES 2022

Sunday, May 8, 2022 |

JULIE MCCLEEARY NANCY JUSTIS

newsroom@wcfcourier.com ‌

WATERLOO — It’s no surprise that many people follow in the footsteps of a parent when deciding upon a career choice. Julie McCleeary, an LPN at UnityPoint’s Internal Medicine North Crossing office in Waterloo and the UnityPoint Clinic LGBTQ in Cedar Falls, is no exception.

Her mother had been a certified nursing assistant at a care center in Mediapolis while McCleeary was growing up.

“I remember her telling me stories about the work and the job,” McCleeary said. “She had mentioned to me a couple times that I would be really good at that.

She saw that as something I could build on.”

Her first job while in high school was as a CNA in Mediapolis, a short drive from her home in Morning Sun, Iowa.

“I loved it. I would work after school and during the summers. I loved just taking care of people. It was so rewarding and made me feel accomplished when I was in high school.”

Upon graduating from Morning Sun, she took classes for a year at Southeastern Community College in West Burlington with the intention of studying psychiatry. As McCleeary explained it, her focus wasn’t entirely on school at that time. She moved to Davenport and got married. The couple moved to Kentucky and had four children, now ages 30 to 21. When she got divorced, she moved back to Cedar Falls in 2009 and decided she had to do something.

“The kids were grown enough to where I could go back to school,” she said. What really pushed her over the edge to earn her degree in nursing was when she was in labor with her fourth child.

“The nurse and the whole team who took care of me and Cameron were so caring. I started to panic at one point because things weren’t going as fast as they had with the other kids. The nurse just calmed me down and had such a caring presence.

After that experience, I decided I wanted to go into obstetrics and be an OB nurse.

Long-term care came up in the middle, and I loved that.”

She enrolled at Kaplan and earned her LPN degree in 2010. She was one of the last classes to graduate from Kaplan be-

fore the school started its registered nurse program. She never has returned to earn her RN degree.

“I really thought about it, but I was a single parent. I went from working parttime at KwikStar so I could go to school and I couldn’t pass up having insurance, a steady paycheck and being able to stand on my own two feet. I like being independent.”

Her first job after earning her LPN was with Ultimate Nursing, an in-home nursing company. She had two pediatric clients, a 17-year-old boy in his senior high school year, and a second-grade girl.

“I would spend all day in school with them, taking care of their feedings, medications and basic needs while with them,” McCleeary explained. “The second shift would come over when we returned home.

The boy eventually moved to a group home, and the girl and her family moved away. By then I had moved to Traer and was tired of the travel, so I applied at Sunrise Health Care.

“I absolutely loved it. It felt like I was taking care of family members. But we had a particularly bad year prior to COVID when a lot of the residents got influenza. I became depressed because we were losing a lot of people. I wanted to try something different. After six years (2011-2017), I applied for a clinic job. I was hired at UnityPoint Internal Medicine, and I’ve been here ever since.”

Kelly Hassman, McCleeary’s supervisor at Internal Medicine, and Dr. Kyle Christiason started the LGBTQ clinic at Prairie Parkway about the time McCleeary began working with them. They were asking for providers. She thought it made sense to join them there since she already was working with them at North Crossing.

“I have learned so much working with Kelly and the LGBTQ,” she said. “A new patient can be very nervous and feel like they are not accepted. Being called the wrong pronoun can be completely devastating in finding their way during transition. Here, they feel welcome and heard.”

McCleeary added, “I like helping a patient with something, whether it be a medication refill or paperwork. Feeling I’ve done something good for someone.

When a patient looks you in the eye and says thank you so much. It makes all the difference in the world. You know you’re in a career you should be in.”

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‘Feeling I’ve done something good for someone’

CHRIS ZOELLER COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

Julie McCleeary

! s t a r g n o C

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TOP 10 NURSES 2022

ROBERTA MURRAY

Known for ‘endless compassion’ and ‘going above and beyond’

MELODY PARKER

melody.parker@wcfcourier.com ‌

CHRIS ZOELLER COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

Roberta Murray

“

I can’t imagine anything else that I could do that I would mean as much to me as helping my residents.

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Roberta Murray once took a vacation from nursing and went to work at Omega Cabinets.

But she couldn’t resist the desire get back into the career she loved. “People I worked with found out I’d been a nurse, and they started asking me health questions. I missed it,” said Murray of Waterloo.

It was 10 years coming, but Murray finally returned to nursing. Now she is an LPC charge nurse at Western Home Communities, and works with doctors to take care of residents and serve their needs.

She’s also been named one of the Courier’s Top Nurses in the Cedar Valley.

In her nomination, colleague Haley Broten wrote, “Roberta treats every resident as if they were family and continues to go above and beyond on a daily basis. Not only does she impact the lives of residents, but also the staff that works with her.”

Murray, 64, laughed when she learned the news and figured out that it was Broten who nominated her for the honor. “It was laughter of joy. I told my sister and she said it was well-deserved. My kids said the same thing. They think it’s wonderful that someone finally recognized me for all my hard work. My kids always know where I’m at – either at home or at work, the only two places I go,” she said.

She has worked at Western Home Communities for three years, but her career in elder care is a lengthy one, including a lengthy stint at Ravenwood Specialty Care, as well as Cedar Falls Health Care Center and Pillar of Cedar Valley in Waterloo, formerly Country View care center.

“I love working here at Western Home.

It’s more like a family. The other staff members know you and care about you, and you care about them. All of us care about the residents.”

Murray earned her nursing degree in 1989 from Hawkeye Community College.

“Like a lot of women, I’d gone through a divorce and had kids that I needed to raise and support. I started out as a housekeeper at Parkview Gardens and then decided to get into nursing. The pay was better, and it seemed like there

was always a nursing shortage, so I took the program to become a certified nursing assistant. I realized I like nursing, so it just started from there,” Murray explained.

She has four children, sons Jeff and Justin, and daughters Jessica and Hannah.

“When they were younger, my two girls loved going out to see the residents. My boys went with me to meet the residents when I was a CNA. The residents always love kids and animals,” like dogs.

Working within the elder care community continues to be a worthwhile and satisfying experience for Murray.

“You learn a lot from the elderly – how to care more for people. Someday you’re going to be there, and you want to care for these people the way you want someone to care for you.

“You realize we all come from different places, and you respect people.

We all have a past, and we all have lived our lives in different ways. You learn so much from the stories they tell you.

They know I care, that I’m interested in them. They ask about how my kids are doing. They probably know as much

about me as I do about them,” Murray explained.

“My residents all know when I have a day off, and they’re not happy,” she said, laughing. “They know who I am and that I’m always going to joke with them and take time to talk with them.”

Broten said, “Roberta helps make our facility feel more like home with her endless amount of compassion.”

Murray is humbled by her honor as a top nurse. “Working with the elderly is always want I wanted to do. It feels natural to me. I like to know who my residents are, what they care about, the personal side of them. They appreciate that as well, and I like to remember their birthdays and those sorts of things.”

She added, “I can’t imagine anything else that I could do that I would mean as much to me as helping my residents.

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| Sunday, May 8, 2022

TOP 10 NURSES 2022

JUDY OWENS

She has a passion for serving vulnerable population

META HEMENWAY-FORBES

newsroom@wcfcourier.com ‌

WATERLOO — On the heels of a global pandemic lies another — a mental health crisis gripping the country. In Iowa, the picture is similar. In a federal Center for Disease Control and Prevention report released in March this year, 27.2% of Iowans were taking a prescription medication for mental health issues in that month.

Judy Owens, a certified medical assistant with Black Hawk-Grundy Mental Health Center, is being recognized for her tireless efforts to help this vulnerable population. Though not a nurse, she’s being honored among the Courier’s Top Cedar Valley Nurses for her work in mental health care.

“I was shocked, especially since I’m not a nurse,” Owens said. “It’s an honor to even be nominated.”

But her important work in a crucial health care sector made her a standout for the award, regardless of her credentials, her nominator said.

“She is very compassionate, genuine and empathetic. She has a passion for serving this vulnerable population,” said Alexis Adams, who nominated Owens for the award. “The strong relationships that she has with her patients as well as her co-workers is one of the things we cherish about her at our agency. When you interact with Judy, it feels like you are dealing with family.”

Owens’ primary responsibility is organizing the health center’s Wednesday shot clinic. On that day, the staff administers 60-70 shots of long-acting medications targeting mental health disorders, “most of them indications for schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder,” Owen said.

Schizoaffective disorder is a chronic mental health condition characterized primarily by symptoms of schizophrenia, such as hallucinations or delusions, and symptoms of a mood disorder, such as mania and depression, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

There are many challenges in treating those with these mental health conditions, Owens said.

“We have a lot of people who don’t show up. Remember we’re dealing with mental stability issues, homeless popu-

CHRIS ZOELLER COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

Judy Owen lations. We work hard to build a rapport with them. We try not to invade their space. They know we’re not here to judge them. We treat them like people and they appreciate that. That makes a huge difference.”

For patients who don’t have transportation to the shot clinic, Owens arranges for home visits to ensure they get their medication.

“Our job is to meet people where they are,” she explained.

It’s that mindset that makes Owens a valuable part of her team, said Tom Eachus, executive director at Black Hawk-Grundy Mental Health Center.

“She is just one of those people who is always helping others and takes on additional responsibility,” he said. “We have

about 300 patients who get an injection of their medications. The amount of people she serves, people with very difficult diagnoses and circumstances, she does it with compassion. I can’t say enough good things about her.”

Owens came to her health care career later in life. She had worked for her family’s screenprinting business, which eventually closed after her father passed away.

“I just decided to go back to school. I was 48,” she said. “I really wanted a fulltime job and didn’t want to work at a convenience store.”

She enrolled in Kaplan University’s CMA program, and graduated in 2011.

“I excelled in school and was on the dean’s list and president’s list every quarter. It taught me confidence in myself. I

would have gone for (a registered nurse degree), but I didn’t have the money or the time,” she said.

Owens has worked at the mental health center since 2015, and said she has found her calling there.

“I kind of fell into it. I was looking for a position, and I had never worked in mental health before. I really like what I do. It is very rewarding to see people improve and be able to have a normal life. You have to have a passion for wanting to help the underserved.”

Owens, 60, has been married to her husband, Todd, for 38 years. The couple have a daughter and two grandchildren, ages 11 and 5. In their free time, they enjoy spending time with family and working on their acreage.

TOP 10 NURSES 2022

Sunday, May 8, 2022 |

ICU nurse is ‘excellent example of compassionate care’

META HEMENWAY-FORBES

newsroom@wcfcourier.com ‌

WATERLOO — Being a nurse seems to run in the family for Crystal McCarty Peters. Both of her sisters are nurses, as well as two of her aunts. Peters, initially, was the outlier who worked in the banking industry Today, she’s an intensive care nurse at MercyOne Waterloo Medical Center and has been named one of this year’s Cedar Valley Top Nurses.

“I was really surprised. When I found out, I literally just sat and cried so many happy tears,” she said. “It feels so good to know that what you do makes a difference.

It’s a huge honor.”

Her path to nursing excellence began under tragic circumstances. Her grandmother was diagnosed with cancer, and Peters was involved in her care for a yearand-a-half before she died. Then, her father got cancer. Twice.

“Unfortunately, the second time he didn’t make it,” Peters said. “But we were so blessed to be able to bring him home and provide him around-the-clock care between my sisters and my aunt. It was an honor to be able to care for someone who once cared for us. That will forever be something I am grateful for.”

Peters’ mother also is a two-time cancer survivor. Those experiences were a career “game changer,” Peters noted. “I really wanted to have a direct impact. I have seen their fight, their perseverance and suffering, and it fueled my desire to help others.”

Peters, 42, graduated from the registered nurse program at Hawkeye Community College in 2010 and earned her bachelor’s of science in nursing in 2018 via Grand Canyon University’s online program For four years she was a “float” nurse, working in a variety of departments at the hospital. “Each day I would call in and say, ‘where am I working today?’”

Peters then worked in the intensive care unit for a time before leaving to pursue her bachelor’s degree. When she returned, she worked in outpatient procedures. In 2020 when COVID hit, she felt a responsibility to return to the ICU. “We were really overwhelmed, as all hospitals were,” she said. “I volunteered to go back to intensive care. I still had the

“

CHRIS ZOELLER COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

Crystal McCarty Peters skills to run a ventilator and a drip to take care of these patients.

“It’s been a really, really challenging last couple of years — emotionally, mentally, physically and even morally. In the last two years I’ve seen more deaths than in the eight years before that. I’ve cried for more patients and family members than seems possible. But it’s rewarding to be able to care for them and let them know their life matters, and to help loved ones cope or come to terms with saying goodbye. It’s a lot of reflecting and understanding that what we do matters, even if we don’t get the outcome we want to see.”

Patients and families have taken note of the care Peters provides, said Jenn Murphy, who nominated Peters for the Cedar Valley Top Nurse award.

“She embodies selflessness. She is incredibly caring and treats each patient as if they are her own, and each family with care and respect,” Murphy said. “Families often ask for her by name as they know she provides excellent care and come to trust her. She is exactly the kind of nurse you would want caring for your loved one, and is an excellent example of compassionate care.”

Peters is quick to give credit to the entire ICU nurse team, particularly her immediate supervisor, Nikki Hahn.

“Nikki really invests in our staff in terms of additional education, updated equipment and quality improvement initiatives.

I hope she knows how valued she is.”

Peters also credits her family for their support. She and her husband, Steve Northness, have three sons — Logan, 23; Ethan, 13; and Finn, 6.

“I could not have done the last couple of years without my husband. He really took on a lot of extra things because I was working consistently 60 hours a week.

It was a lot, but he was able to fill in all the gaps. He did all the grocery shopping,

There’s been times in the last couple of years I’ve questioned it. How long can you do this? How do you get through this when it feels like there’s no end in sight? But at the end of the day I know there’s no place else I’d rather be.

“

CRYSTAL MCCARTY PETERS

13

cooking, shuttling kids, you name it. I have a really good support system.”

The COVID pandemic also gave rise to a lot of self-reflection on her decision to be a nurse, Peters said.

“There’s been times in the last couple of years I’ve questioned it. How long can you do this? How do you get through this when it feels like there’s no end in sight?

But at the end of the day I know there’s no place else I’d rather be.”

COMMITTED TO CARE We thank all the nurses at our clinic and in the Cedar valley for their commitment to your care.

Wendy Potter, RN selected as a Top 10 Cedar Valley Nurses Honoree.

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| Sunday, May 8, 2022

TOP 10 NURSES 2022

SHAWN PIERCE

Nurse and residents are like family at Arlington Place

MELODY PARKER

melody.parker@wcfcourier.com‌

CHRIS ZOELLER COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

Shawn Pierce

“

Even on the worst day, if you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life.

You have to treat each day as a new day and move forward from there.

have a great bunch of people here.”

Pierce views the best part of her job is being able to sit down with each resident to talk about what is happening in their lives, whether it is simply to visit or discuss a health-related issue. “Especially when it’s something serious, I can be the one who says ‘you need to see the doctor,’ or ‘this needs to be taken care of,” she said.

“

GRUNDY CENTER –Shawn Pierce loves a good story. As RN Healthcare Coordinator at Arlington Place of Grundy Center, she hears plenty of entertaining yarns and touching anecdotes from residents at the assisted living center. A memory care facility is attached.

“I really enjoy hearing from the residents. We become part of their families.

It’s hard for people to see their loved ones drift away from them. We accept them where they are in their journey in life. That’s why I love what I do,” said Pierce.

The Aplington native grew up in Parkersburg. Initially she thought she wanted to be a secretary, but she also wanted to help others. Her brother said, “You need to be a nurse,” and pointed her in that direction. She became a certified nurse aide and during the clinical section of her program became passionately interested in long-term health care and gerontology, the science of aging.

Pierce was a licensed professional nurse for 22 years and worked at Maple Manor Village in Aplington. She also earned her RN through online courses at College Network.

“Shawn has had over 20 years of service in the long-term care industry. She is such an asset to our team at Arlington Place of Grundy Center. Shawn is a kind, compassionate, caring nurse who goes the extra mile for her residents. She works hard to make sure the residents have the care they need, whether it be some TLC, therapy, medications or a visit,” said her colleague Kaylene Hoskins of Grundy Center.

Hoskins nominated Pierce as one of the Courier’s Top Nurses in the Cedar Valley. Pierce’s reaction was “I thought it was a mistake. There are so many more deserving nurses, I thought. Then I was humbled. It took me a while to even tell my family that it had even happened,” Pierce explained.

Her role as nurse includes being a liaison between the resident and their doctor, “comforting them, letting know it’s OK and to be someone that they can trust. They treat me like a daughter. We

The hardest part is experiencing loss when a resident dies. “Losing someone is always hard. Sometimes it’s harder to deal with the family after that happens.

I want to be that comfort for them and to help the family.”

Pierce said gerontology is often overlooked as a fulfilling and rewarding career option for nurses. “Everyone wants to go into a hospital, so we never have enough

nurses for gerontology. Nurses think it’s the same-old, same-old, but every day is a new day. We get to share new experiences with the residents. Even if you see them every day, you see a new aspect of them, a new problem that needs your help and knowledge. It’s challenging,” she explained.

She’d love younger nurses to “give us a chance before hopping on the hospital train.”

For herself, she has no regrets. “Even on the worst day, if you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life. You have to treat each day as a new day and move forward from there.”

Hoskins added, “If everyone had a healthcare coordinator like Shawn, they would be blessed.”

nurses.

Congratulations to the Cedar Valley’s Top Nurses

Emily Babinat Community Cancer Center

Betty Marshall Surgery

Julie McCleeary UnityPoint Clinic

Judy Owen Black Hawk-Grundy Mental Health Center

Cindy Powell Case Management

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| Sunday, May 8, 2022

TOP 10 NURSES 2022

WENDY POTTER

Pediatrics nurse ‘loves these kids’ at Peoples Clinic

MELODY PARKER

melody.parker@wcfcourier.com ‌

CHRIS ZOELLER COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

Wendy Potter

“

This is a wonderful place where you feel comfortable. You’re not just a number.

You’re a person.

“

Even as a child, Wendy Potter knew she wanted to be a nurse and take care of people.

“Ever since I got my first doctor’s kit. It was what I was happiest playing with,” Potter said. Because she constantly played with the kit, she got a new one every year for Christmas. “It had fake syringes and the little reflex hammer for knees. I had a younger brother and two step-siblings, and my brother was my patient. You had to have patients to treat,” she noted, laughing.

“There was about a month in there that when I wanted to be a hairdresser. My cousin had graduated from high school and gone to beauty school. Then I decided I could still be a nurse and do hair on the side,” she recalled, with another laugh.

Potter fulfilled her dream to become a nurse. She is a pediatric nurse at People’s Community Health Clinic, where she has worked for 10 years.

“Wendy is such a good pediatric nurse.

She is a calming presence when dealing with our patients at People’s Clinic/Pedi department. Prior to her work at Peoples Clinic, she was an NICU nurse at Covenant Medical Center for many years and still has contact with some of her NICU families,” said Cynthia Kress, behavioral health provider at Peoples.

“She handles the triage office at PCHC. We encounter difficult situations and challenges most every day, and Wendy always tackles these situations while handling other duties as well. We are very fortunate she is on our team,” Kress wrote in nominating Potter for honors as one of the Courier’s Top 15 Nurses in the Cedar Valley.

“It’s a huge honor. I’m humbled. I come in every day to do my job to the best of my ability, so to have someone say I’m doing a good job, that’s like sunshine in my heart,” Potter said.

Potter grew up in Waterloo and graduated from Central High School, followed by nursing school at Allen College. “It was what I wanted to do, and I’m so happy that I picked it. I was a good student, and I went to Allen and never regretted it. My training was phenomenal.”

She previously worked at Covenant

Medical Center for 32 years, the last 24 years in neonatal intensive care and pediatrics departments.

“I’d worked with older people, then a position opened up in neonatal, and I decided to spread my wings and try it. I fell

in love with the babies. Sometimes it was the hardest job ever, but I saw so many happy parents and babies that it was also the best job ever,” Potter said.

“I became the godmother to one little boy, who grew up and has his own baby now. Thanks to Facebook, I’ve been able to keep in touch with several patients. It’s so rewarding and so worth it, to know I had something to do with setting these little ones on their way to going home.”

When Potter learned about an opening for pediatric nurse at Peoples, she decided it was the right time to make a move. “I jumped on it. Learning to take care of bigger kids has been such a fun thing. I love these kids, these are my kids,” she said of her pint-sized patients.

It can be challenging to work with older children, especially teenagers. “Some-

times they’ll talk to you or you’ll actually get a response from some of these teenagers. You’re like ‘Wow, they’re opening up to me.’ I’m reaching them and they want to share what they’re experiencing,’ so that’s very rewarding.”

Potter is thrilled to be working at Peoples. “We’re a good team. We work well together. I love this place. We have management that cares about us. We care about each other. It’s a family. We have a clinic potluck on Thanksgiving and the food is unreal, and a picnic in the summer.

“This is a wonderful place where you feel comfortable. You’re not just a number. You’re a person,” she said.

“Yes, it’s a hard job, but it’s very rewarding in the long run. I work crazy hours, and I have crazy days, but there’s so much good I can do,” Potter added.

TOP 10 NURSES 2022

Sunday, May 8, 2022 |

CINDY POWELL META HEMENWAY-FORBES

newsroom@wcfcourier.com ‌

WATERLOO — Cindy Powell believes her experience in multiple areas of nursing allowed her to see the impact her role as a nurse has on patients, from surgery to hospitalization to discharge.

That professional range and dedication to her patients are also what earned her a 2022 Cedar Valley Top Nurse award.

“Cindy has worked in many different areas during her nursing career. I personally know her from her current role as a case manager at UnityPoint Hospital,” said Cristal Moreland, who nominated Powell for the award. “Cindy always strives to do the best for her patients.”

Powell received her bachelor’s of science in nursing in 1975 from Marycrest College in Davenport and worked at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics until 1981. She moved to the Cedar Valley and has worked at UnityPoint Health-Allen Hospital since.

“My mom was a nurse, and I always knew I wanted to be a nurse,” she said. “I never really thought about any other career.

There are so many facets of nursing. You’re not pigeonholed into one thing. There are so many avenues you can take.”

Powell would know. She has spent time working in many of those avenues. Her first nursing stint was in the operating room at UIHC in Iowa City. She then moved to Waterloo to work in the OR at UnityPoint Health-Allen Hospital. She also has worked in Allen’s general surgery department and the hospital’s wound clinic. Today, she’s a registered nurse case manager, helping patients with hospitalization discharge needs.

Each stint in her nursing career was a building block to her current role, she said.

“The OR and the wound clinic and general surgery introduced me to what brought the patient here. I have seen the continuation of their needs. I see somebody comes back from surgery and has so much pain, and I can help with that. It helps me to realize and sympathize and empathize more with patients.”

Now, as a case manager, “it has helped me see how different everybody’s lives are.

Everything might not be fine,” she added.

“It has helped me be a more empathetic nurse and human. It has opened my eyes to the struggles that people have and the ways we can help them.”

Those struggles can be numerous and

significant for patients discharging from the hospital.

“We make sure they’re safe when they go home. We see every patient and evaluate to get an outline of their story at home. Who do they live with? Do they need a walker or crutches? A lot of patients have to go to skilled nursing after discharge. We find out their preference then call that place to see if it’s available and whether there’s (insurance) coverage. We make sure to get them transportation there. A good discharge plan keeps them safe and makes sure they have the resources they need.

“Social determinants of health are a huge follow-through for a patient,” she explained. “We need to look further than what they needed at the hospital. Some can’t afford antibiotics. We make sure they have them before they leave or have the means to get them. Lots of times people don’t want to say, ‘I don’t have money,’ and they go home and have to choose between their medications and food for their family.”

Moreland said Powell has gone above and beyond to help patients, often in ways that may seem small but have big impact, like finding clothing for patients who are discharged from a hospital stay.

“I have seen her go out of her way endless times for patients, their families and co-workers, from finding a set of crutches for someone who can’t afford them to bringing in clothing for someone in need,” Moreland said. “She truly is an inspiration for not only what a nurse should be, but an amazing person as well.”

Powell said it’s important to treat patients as human beings rather than a jumble of medical symptoms and discharge instructions.

Powell and her team also started a fund through their own personal contributions to make sure patients have needed assistive equipment — like canes, walkers or crutches — when they leave the hospital.

“Most insurances pay for assistive devices like a cane or walker, but some (patients) don’t have insurance. Through this fund they’re able to leave with what they need. It’s an important part of discharge planning that they have what they need when they leave. They’ll have a better outcome, and that’s what we aim for.”

In her off hours, Powell loves to spend time with family and friends. She has two children, two stepchildren and two grandchildren.

She’s also a longtime volunteer at Columbus High School and loves to read and garden.

17

Treat patients as human beings with struggles, not symptoms

CHRIS ZOELLER COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

Cindy Powell

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| Sunday, May 8, 2022

TOP 10 NURSES 2022

CLAUDIA ROBINSON

Being a nurse is ‘best job in the world’

HOLLY HUDSON HILL

newsroom@wcfcourier.com ‌

WATERLOO — Ask Claudia Robinson about her nursing career and she will tell you, “It’s the best job in the world.” Repeatedly.

“When I was just in fourth grade, I got hooked on reading books about nursing and caring for the elderly. Our grandmother was living with us, and I would help take care of her. I loved it. I always really wanted to be a nurse.”

A product of the Waterloo school system and a young mother at 16, Robinson attempted to juggle her responsibilities.

“That changed my trajectory,” she said. “I tried several different ways to go to school and work fulltime. I ended up working for the phone company for 15 years. But I knew that nursing was in my heart.

“When the phone company offered an early out and to pay for school, I jumped on it. I got an associate degree and then my RN.” Robinson has had a varied nursing career.

At Allen College, she worked on the cardiac floor for a few years and in the resource pool where she floated to different areas of the hospital. She then took a job at a cardiologist office.

“I learned a lot there. Dr. Hugo Koo was a wonderful teacher.”

She also worked in student health at Wartburg College in Waverly and at John Deere for a short time. But she seemed to find her true calling after joining the Black Hawk County Health Department.

“When I started, I was working in the child health division, going into the day cares and working with kids, doing immunizations, checking their teeth. You know, taking care of the babies.

“Then I switched up and came to the Pinecrest Health Center where I focused more on sexual health and disease investigation as a disease prevention specialist.

“We do training with the communicable diseases, do partner services to inform and track infections, provide education. It’s a lot of teaching. A lot of providers call us for information for treatment and testing.

“Sometimes, in tough situations, I am able to provide a safe, supportive environment, offer them treatment and education. It’s the best job in the world.”

CHRIS ZOELLER COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

Claudia Robinson Robinson’s colleague, Janine Johnson nominated her for Top Nurses honors.

“Claudia Robinson is a registered nurse who cares deeply about her community.

She is committed to providing health care and services to the public and meeting them where they are,” Johnson wrote.

“She is a special person and knows how to communicate effectively with people when discussing sensitive health issues,” Johnson continued. “Her patients love her and so do her co-workers. She has a heart of gold and has so much knowledge and a desire to share that knowledge with providers, Allen nursing students, coworkers, the public and her patients. …

Her dedication to public health is admirable, and I am blessed to work with her.”

“We have a great staff,” Robinson said

of her co-workers. “We work together.

Through the Black Hawk County website, (www.blackhawkcounty.iowa.gov), we’re trying to work on building our referral resources, giving complete health support, trying to connect those dots in our community. Black Hawk County has great services, great supportive resources.”

Robinson was surprised to find out she was chosen as a top nurse.

“I just really appreciate being nominated,” she said. “It is a great honor. It’s wonderful that the community has this type of acknowledgement. It’s great to be recognized, but there are so many nurses who are working every day who have big hearts. If you have a nurse who is doing her job right, it’s hard work. You give a piece of yourself to so many people.”

Robinson stays just as busy outside of work.

She and her husband, Ricky, have been together for 39 years and have seven kids.

“There’s mine, his and ours,” she said.

And the pair have more than 20 grandchildren.

Robinson is also a partner in 100 Strong Coalition.

Robinson encourages young people to go into nursing.

“There are so many different areas you can go into in nursing,” she said. “Go to school. Get your degree, and just enjoy it and work hard. It will pay off. It is rewarding. You can make a living and take care of your family and receive a reward just by going to work. It’s the best job in the world.”

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| Sunday, May 8, 2022

TOP 10 NURSES 2022

JENNIFER SHERRETS

Nurse puts smiles on faces at NewAldaya Lifescapes

MELODY PARKER

melody.parker@wcfcourier.com ‌

CEDAR FALLS – Ten-year-old Nolan thinks his mom is a celebrity.

And she is.

Sherrets, a nurse at NewAldaya Lifescapes, is being honored as one of the Courier’s Top Nurses in the Cedar Valley.

“I didn’t believe it when I first heard. I was definitely shocked. I had no idea that anything like this would ever happen to me,” she said.

“I’m very excited and very proud.”

Sons Oliver, 14 and Abram, 5, and her husband Anthony Ryckman, are equally proud. “My husband works at the Mental Health Institute in Independence, and my mom is a nurse too. She knows what nurses go through, and we all know how to keep each other going,” Sherrets said.

Ciara Morales nominated Sherrets for the recognition. “She goes above and beyond her job title. She’s always helping out the CNA’s (certified nurse aides). Everyone loves her because of her calming personality. She has picked up a lot of hours to help everyone out during the pandemic.

She’s very motivating and upbeat,” said Morales.

Sherrets has worked at NewAldaya Lifescapes for four years in June. Previously she was a nurse in pediatric home health with one client for 11 years. “What I’m doing now is the complete opposite, working with older people,” said Sherrets who grew up in Independence. She earned her degree in practical nursing in 2006 from Hawkeye Community College in Waterloo.

There wasn’t any question that Sherrets would choose to become a nurse.

“My mom was a single mom and had me and my sisters a year apart. She went to nursing school when we were little, and we grew up with her being a nurse. I’ve always been the kind of person who likes to take care of people, the peacekeeper, the nurturer. I’m the middle child, so I took on that role. I love making people happy.”

Being a nurse at NewAldaya gives her that opportunity. “They’re like my family. I love going in and putting smiles on their faces.”

The COVID-19 pandemic has taken the biggest toll on the elderly community.

Throughout the country, long-term care communities like NewAldaya took steps

CHRIS ZOELLER COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

Jennifer Sherrets to protect residents, including the isolation of residents from family members and other visitors because age is one of the high-risk factors for COVID and its variants. In addition to loss of live, the lockdown created other difficulties for the elderly, particularly physical isolation and emotional estrangement from family members.

Sherrets described the pandemic as the biggest challenge she’s faced as a nurse.

“When COVID hit, everything changed for us. It hit really hard, the isolation of residents away from their families, and they didn’t get to leave. I wasn’t expecting how hard it was for them, not being able to see their families and friends in person and seeing staff wearing masks and face shields and hearing all the stuff

on the news.

“They were scared. The isolation was so hard for residents. I remember so many times when it was really bad that a resident would say ‘help me,’ or ‘I want to die.’

It was our job to let them know that we cared and that we would do everything we could to get them through this. The ones hit the hardest, I think, were residents who saw family members almost every day. They were the ones who felt the most lost, the most cut-off from family.

“We were there to reassure them that we would keep them safe and gave them hugs when they needed it,” she explained.

Although Sherrets workload increased in the numbers of assessments and the amount of charting that had to get done, she made it a point to spend more time

with residents.

“There were a lot of rewarding moments. We had a lot of people who had to be in isolation, and my favorite moments were when they returned to their floor and everyone was outside their doors, clapping for them. It was so exciting, and they were so happy to come back to their floor.”

Sherrets never dreamed she’d be a nurse at a long-term care facility. “It was never a thought in my mind. I grew up with my grandma as my best friend, and I love elderly people. I see my residents, and they remind me of my grandmother. I treat them like family, like I would want my grandma to be treated.

“It makes me happy to know I can make them happy.”

TOP 10 NURSES 2022

Sunday, May 8, 2022 |

LAURA SKILLEN

21

Nurse finds her niche, ‘sets high bar’ at Cedar Valley Hospice

MELODY PARKER

melody.parker@wcfcourier.com ‌

Laura Skillen stepped onto her career path at seven years old.

“I’ve always wanted to be a nurse. I love helping people, and it’s challenging and different from day to day. I don’t sit in an office all day. I love what I do,” said Skillen, who became a nurse 38 years ago.

As clinical services manager for Cedar Valley Hospice in the Waverly and Grundy Center offices, she oversees the staff – “I’m available 24/7 for my staff,” and assists with admissions and working with patients.

“When it comes to dedication to the Cedar Valley Hospice mission, there isn’t anyone who excels more than Laura. As clinical services manager, she oversees both the Waverly and Grundy Office staff.

She is an inspirational manager who is always willing to jump in and help wherever needed with patients, on-call, admissions and being available to staff, all while managing her own responsibilities,” said colleague Angie Mohn, an RN staff nurse for Cedar Valley Hospice.

Mohn nominated Skillen for the Courier’s Top Nurses award. Skillen was surprised to learn that she was one of 15 Cedar Valley nurses chosen for the award.

When she heard the news, she cried.

“I was so honored. Nothing like this has ever happened to me. To think the staff thought that much of me to nominate me was wonderful,” Skillen said.

“We have a great staff. Cedar Valley Hospice is great to work for, and this is what I love. I can’t imagine working for any other organization.”

While attending Plainfield High School, she began working as a nurse aide. She was 16. “I loved it and decide to go to nursing school,” Skillen said. She earned her degree at North Iowa Area Community College in Mason City. One of her sisters and two nieces are nurses.

“A couple of sisters were nurse aides, so I knew what I was getting into.”

Skillen worked at both Allen and Covenant hospitals in Waterloo, and was director of nursing at a nursing home before finding her niche in hospice care.

She has worked at Cedar Valley Hospice for 16 years.

Helping people at the end of their

CHRIS ZOELLER COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

Laura Skillen life journey takes both compassion and stamina, said Skillen. “It is not for the weak of heart. People are there to celebrate a newborn’s life. It should be the same when you are dying, no matter how long you’ve lived. It’s rewarding to help people through that journey.”

When talking through different patient scenarios with her staff, Skillen said one constant is to “meet the patient and their family where they are at in the journey.

Not everybody is ready for us. Maybe the body is ready, but the mind and spirit are not. We aren’t here to dash anyone’s hope. We’re here as added support and help on this journey,” she explained.

“It’s a tumultuous situation for families. If we can help them, then we’ve done

our job. And we do it well at Cedar Valley Hospice.”

Mohn praised Skillen for taking time to offer her staff and others “support and words of kindness. She goes above and beyond daily to make sure the needs of everyone she encounters are met. On top of all of her duties, she is an excellent educator. With over 16 years of experience in the field, she never misses an opportunity to share her wealth of knowledge with new staff, while helping others continue to learn and grow in their positions,” Mohn explained.

“Laura sets the bar high and leads by example, which motivates her staff to strive for the very best,” Mohn added.

Skillen describes her career as reward-

ing, but challenging. Her advice to other people interested in pursuing a nursing career is to accept that challenges come with every job. “Don’t give up. And don’t go into it for the wrong reasons. Yes, it’s a good paying career, but if you don’t have the compassion and heart for it, you’re not going to be happy.”

She has been married to her husband John for 10 years. When it’s time to unwind, Skillen enjoys working with their Clydesdale horses on their acreage.

“It’s a nice escape for me, and a good kind of getaway for whatever the day has been like,” Skillen added.

They have three step-children who live nearby, and six grandchildren, who also keep them busy.

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| Sunday, May 8, 2022

TOP 10 NURSES 2022

YOLANDA WILSON

Humbled and honored by her journey as a nurse

NANCY JUSTIS

newsroom@wcfcourier.com ‌

CHRIS ZOELLER COURIER STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER‌

Yolanda Wilson

“

You are entrusted with the lives of not only the patient, but also their family.

“

WATERLOO — Unlike some people who struggle into their late teens or college years about what they want to do with their lives, Yolanda Wilson experienced early what direction her future would take.

At 7, her maternal grandfather was diagnosed with Guillain-Barre Syndrome, a disease that attacks the central nervous system. It’s characterized by a rapid onset of numbness and paralysis. He spent the last three-and-a-half years of his life hospitalized at what is now MercyOne Waterloo Medical Center.

“I spent a lot of time in the hospital,” Wilson said. “We became real familiar with the nursing staff. We were very involved as a family. I was quite a curious child. As I got older the nurses would teach me and show me how to help, such as if a ventilator lost power and how I could help my grandfather breathe.”

From that point on, Wilson knew she wanted to work in health care, particularly obstetrics or pediatrics. She wanted to work with children. As she got older, she decided maybe she didn’t want to be a doctor, but “maybe a nurse. We spend more time with the patients.”

When she got to middle school, MercyOne, then Covenant Medical Center, provided Medical Explorers for kids interested in the health care field. The program was very hands-on and from eighth grade to graduation from Waterloo West High School, she completed Medical Explorersmandated volunteer hours at Covenant.

Upon graduating from West in 2000, she attended the University of Iowa two years and transferred to Hawkeye College where she earned her LPN and RN degrees, the latter in 2006. She spent six years in the post-operative unit at Missouri Baptist Medical in St. Louis while also doing pediatric home health nursing for a home health company.

A divorced mother of three children, daughters ages 11 and 9, and a son 7, she began to have child care issues. She returned to Waterloo where she had a larger support system to help raise her children.

She was hired by America Health Services, where she worked with long-term and post-acute long-term patients in nursing homes and rehabilitation centers.

While visiting her grandmother at Mer-

cyOne, her current supervisor remembered Wilson from her volunteer work at the hospital. Jewell Jones asked Wilson to apply for several openings at the hospital.

Wilson did, and she returned in 2019. She works on the medical surgical floor, which also can admit the overflow of patients from cardiac, kidney and orthopedic areas.

“The driving factor for me for working in this area of health care is being able to help the patients who may come in at their worse,” Wilson said. “I don’t always get to see them at their best (after discharged), but I get to see their progress.”

Wilson is very humble about her journey as a nurse. She has received the Daisy Award after being nominated by the family of a terminal patient.

“I was quite shocked. I did my job. I don’t feel like I did anything extraordinary.

The family obviously saw otherwise. The care and compassion we gave them. I am humbled and honored.”

She also has received certification in Advanced Cardiac Life Support and chemotherapy. She says the hospital also is working on a way to cross train nurses for more specialized units.

“We run the gamut of conditions on my

floor from cancer to COVID,” she said.

“During the year of the worst of COVID, I think I saw more deaths than I had seen in all of my previous years as a nurse combined, including working with the elderly.”

Wilson recognizes Jones as her mentor.

“She’s the person who asked me to come back to the hospital. She’s always encouraging, like if I want to learn a new skill.

She’s always open to letting her staff grow.”

With working long hours and raising three children, Wilson says she enjoys unwinding by reading, singing and traveling.

The ocean is her happy place. She’s also active in her church, singing in the choir and working with a young adult group.

“Anyone interested in working in health care needs to have a level of compassion,” she said. “You are entrusted with the lives of not only the patient, but also their family.”

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| Sunday, May 8, 2022

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