Nursing Week 2022
St. Joe’s is celebrating Nursing Week from May 9-13, 2022.
This year, the Canadian Nurses Association’s National Nursing Week theme is We Answer the Call. This theme showcases the many roles that nurses play in a patient’s healthcare journey. St. Joe’s nurses continued to answer the call over the last year in many ways, including through redeployment, working in unfamiliar environments, and supporting one another we stretched our capacity.
Hamilton Spectator Nursing Week Supplement
Look out for our spotlight ad and story in the Hamilton Spectator’s annual Nursing Week supplement on May 12, as well as messages of thanks for our nurses shared internally and on social media. Click here to view the e-copy of the supplement.
It’s Nursing Week! It’s time to get to know some of the St. Joe’s nursing staff.
Meet the husband and wife team, Christine & Mark Filipovic, both nurses at the King campus Hemodialysis unit. They spill the beans on what it’s really like working with your spouse every day!
Thanks to this compassionate duo for sharing their story with us.
What drew you to the nursing profession?
Christine - What drew me to the nursing profession was the guaranteed job opportunities with a variety of choices.
Mark - In my family, and Christine's, health care has been a large part of our lives. My mother was a Registered Nurse in mental health for 32 years and my father was an Orthopedic Technician in the Fracture room for just as long. Even at a young age, my parents encouraged my brother and I to pursue a career in health care. In addition, my mother is a Filipino, so culturally, there is a joke that every Filipino family has to have a child that will one day become a nurse.
What is the most meaningful part of your job?
Christine - The most meaningful part of my job is seeing patients succeed in their understanding of their illness and making educated decisions for their own care.
Mark - As a patient, it must be hard dealing with illness, especially if it is something chronic such as renal failure. From a dialysis perspective, our patient population, on average, needs to come to treatment three times a week for four hours at a time. The regime takes quite a control of their lives. I have always felt that if I could make a difference in the time, they spent at their treatments, that would be the greatest reward for me. If I could provide them with proper care, education, comfort and somehow help in relieving their stress about their health and life changes, that would make me very happy. I try to make the sessions as enjoyable as possible by trying to establish rapport and adding some humour when able. The hospital is quite busy and fast-paced, but it is still very important when providing care to view each person as an individual human being and not just a patient.
What is it like working with your spouse?
Christine - Working with my spouse is pretty much the same as before we were married. We worked together for four years before we dated and got married. I find it funny to see patients and sometimes even staff surprise when they find out we are married. Patient’s love sharing with me that my husband took good care of them.
Mark – My wife and I have always maintained a professional relationship together. We had known each other for many years before we became a couple, so as peers, we had already developed trust and the ability to depend on each other at work when we needed assistance. This has not changed in the 20 years that we have worked together.
A few funny things I tell the newer staff and patients is that we eventually started dating after Christine had been chasing me around work for years, and I finally gave in. This isn't true.
Another thing I usually say is when one of the newer patients tells me that my wife is such a great and kind nurse, I usually tell them, "That is odd because all she does is yell at me when we are home."
I think working with your spouse can be a very functional relationship. The number one thing is just to keep home life and work-life separate while on duty.
What advice would you give to someone just starting their career in nursing?
Christine - My advice to someone just starting their career in nursing is not to let the tough shifts or other people’s attitudes discourage them.
Mark - For new staff starting in nursing, I would say to take advantage of the opportunities to learn and establish a good foundation of skills. Unfortunately, we are amidst a nursing shortage, but that at the same time has also opened many doors for careers in highly skilled areas of nursing, such as ICU, CCU, Emergency Room, Operating Room, Dialysis, etc.
As new graduates with degrees, there are many avenues in advance practice nursing to branch off as Nurse Practitioners, Educators, and Management.