GUELPH – The Wellington Advertiser sat down with nurses Shannon, Wendy and Rita recently to talk about their demanding careers. And while all three nurses now feel they have found a work/life balance, it hasn’t always been that way.
Shannon, a nurse with Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health (WDGPH), left her career in finance behind and at age 40 went back to school, eventually becoming an RN.
“I always wanted to be giving back to people,” she said.
Shannon and Wendy both asked to use first names only for privacy reasons.
Shannon began working with WDGPH about three years ago after first working in mental health and palliative care.
She made the switch during COVID and worked long hours, six and seven days a week in COVID clinics.
Now, she is able to get out in the community and deliver services such as sexual health, harm reduction (including substance use and mental health disorder treatment), vaccine administration and case management of infectious diseases.
Shannon often sets up a booth at community fairs and events to provide information and answer questions. She is also one of the Community Wellness Van team members that supports the community and helps people navigate the healthcare system.
The van has a rural and urban presence, and Shannon said that the schedule is fairly consistent, and people have come to count on it.
Shannon said she loves coming into work, and has also found time recently to travel, and take canoe trips with her daughter. “Before, it was so difficult to find the time to do these things,” she said.
She is committed to lifelong learning. “RNs have recently had their scope for prescribing rights expanded. Part of my growth would be to take those courses and upgrade into that. Even if I didn’t necessarily use it in my role or scope here at public health. That’s another great thing about nursing. There’s always something to learn. Every single day.
“I love when I can go home and I say I heard a great story. I met a fantastic person today, and I learned something today,” she said. “And it really is every day I can say that.”
Shannon said that through nursing she feels she is making a difference for people. “Even if it’s just for two minutes, I feel like I’ve done something for them.”
Wendy, an RN with WDGPH said, “I echo what Shannon said. I think it’s the connections that you make with people. It’s amazing how quickly you can establish a rapport with someone and develop a relationship,” she said.
“COVID really showed that. You would meet someone that you’d never seen. You’re just giving them a vaccine. But the stories you got to hear within those two minutes, actually were incredible. It really made an impact on me – the difference that you can make just by showing empathy and compassion for that person at that moment. It was quite profound.”
Currently, most of Wendy’s connections are by phone. “Even though we’re not face to face, it’s a short interaction, and I can still make a difference and develop that rapport,” she said. “I think that’s really important, especially in stressful times when people are upset, or a child is unwell – when something is wrong.”
Wendy originally went into nursing to “help moms who just delivered babies, to provide them with emotional support during birth, postpartum, breastfeeding, that kind of thing.
“I’ve been at this a long time, so things have evolved over time. And that’s a really great thing about nursing. There are so many different roads you can take. If you don’t like your job in nursing, there’s always another job in nursing that will fit who you are, what your strengths are.”
Wendy too has been able to find a work/life balance, finding time for exercise, and raising her new puppy.
Rita Isley, WDGPH chief nursing officer and vice-president of Community Health is getting ready to celebrate National Nursing Week with Shannon and Wendy and the rest of the staff.
Isley said her path to nursing wasn’t straight forward. “I went to University four or five semesters trying different programs, but none of them had anything to do with people,” she said. But after one week in a nursing program at Conestoga College “I knew this is where I need to be.
“In one of my placements at school, I connected with public health and fell in love with it.” Her appreciation of what nurses deal with every day is based on years of experience and commitment. “I’ve worked in pretty much every program that public health offers, worked in frontline nursing, and management.”
As vice-president of Community Health, Isley is “responsible for the programs that touch the community in a direct way. So vaccines, sexual health, healthy babies, healthy children, our client and community support services and dental program,” Isley said.
As chief nursing officer Isley ensures “our nurses practice according to the College of nurses standard of practice, that we work to implement best practice guidelines wherever possible, and that we work in an interprofessional manner.
“Along with the nurses, I work with other health care professionals to ensure that we work in a collaborative manner.”
Isley said she loves her job, and feels that she has balance in her life.
“My husband and I are avid RVers – glampers,” she said. She also has three dogs that keep her very active.
“I come to work every day, and I love it. Even through the pandemic. It was terrible. It was brutal, but it never took my love away from public health.”
Isley, as exhausted as she was at that time, saw the impact of public health in the community. “I’ve seen the value we bring to the community in so many different ways over the years. And I know that as a result, we are a much stronger, healthier community than we were 25 years ago. I know that the work we are doing is making an impact.”
This year’s National Nursing Week theme is “Changing Lives. Shaping Tomorrow.”
“Shaping tomorrow is a really important piece for me.” Isley said. Through the pandemic, we’ve learned that nurses need to be nimble and adaptable to the environment.
“And if there’s one thing I’m most proud of, it’s the fact that the nurses I work with here at public health demonstrated this day in and day out throughout the pandemic.”
WDGPH rebuilt its programs after the pandemic. “There was shuffling and changing. But what’s even more important is the recognition that we will always be changing. Our healthcare system in Ontario and in Canada has to change, has to adapt to the environment, has to adapt to the population and the health needs, but also it has to adapt to the costs and the way in which the service is delivered.”
Nurses are the largest working force in health care in Ontario. “We can make some differences and we can make some changes,” Isley said.
“I will continue to challenge nurses to think about working in ways that are efficient and effective but also meaningful to the people that we serve.”
During National Nursing Week, Isley said she plans to celebrate what WDGPH has accomplished in the past year, and to share some of the positive comments received from the public. “We’re also going to celebrate how as nurses we take care of ourselves, and we take care of each other.
“There is so much more to nursing than what we envision thinking about when we go to a hospital or doctor’s office. Nurses are everywhere in our community, and they contribute significantly,” she said.
“They welcome us into life, and they’re there to help us as we leave life.”
