Patti is the most supportive manager I have worked within my 15 years of nursing. First of all, she is honest, fair, and consistent. She always supports her nurses 100%; which in turn gives us the confidence to practice our nursing skills to the best of our ability. She always has an open-door policy. And always asks and cares about her nurses as people, not just employees.
I could go on and on about her extraordinary skills as a manager, but I would like to shed light on what makes her unique and unlike most other managers; it's her strong belief in her nurses' work/life balance. She will be the first person to help cover part of a shift so her nurse does not miss out on important life events at home. When I first started working under Patti my son had an event at school. Unfortunately, I had to work that day and could not find coverage to attend the event. My son's teachers assured me the event was not that big of a deal and I would not be missing much. Well, they posted pictures of the event later that day and my son was the ONLY child without a parent at his side. And to make it worse he was coincidently looking at the camera with such a lost look. I think my heart literally broke in half that day. A few days later I was in Patti's office chatting, she asked how my family was, and I explained what had happened earlier that week. I will never forget her response; she said, "A, work should NEVER come before your family. If you are not 100% at home how can I expect you to be 100% at work? Next time you need to attend something for your son and you can't find coverage please let me know. Being there for your children is something they will always remember". To hear that from a manager is amazing! I know many managers are all about staffing. Patti truly allows her nurses to put family first. Which, in return, we always give her 100% of ourselves because we have peace of mind at home. The nurses under her bend over backward to cover shifts and make sure everything is complete because she never hesitates to do the same for us! This is one of many reasons we have NO turnover and why she truly deserves to be recognized.
Patti's dedication to her nurses allows her nurses to be dedicated to excellence at Grady! She serves as such a great mentor; under her guidance, all her nurses are certified RNs. It is too often that good leaders get overlooked because they are meeting all expectations. Thank you for allowing us to recognize our amazing leaders!