| May
4, 2005
Marquette
General celebrating Nurses Week
Mothers and daughters explain their love for nursing
Tina Peppin never
planned on becoming a nurse.
“ I knew I wanted to do something in the medical field,” Tina said. “But
I was really interested in radiation oncology — I’d never considered
nursing.”
Which is why Tina’s mother, Jonell Peppin, a staff nurse in the cardiac
ultrasound department at the Upper
Michigan Heart Institute at Marquette General
Hospital, was so pleased to hear that her daughter had decided to pursue nursing.
“ I was very surprised,” Jonell admits. “But I was also very
happy. I think this is what she was meant to do.”
 |
Marquette
General Hospital registered nurse Jonell Peppin, left, applies
an LPN nursing pin on her daughter, Tina, during a pinning ceremony
a few years back.
Jonell
and Tina are one of several sets of mother/daughter nurses
at Marquette General.
May
6-12 is recognized as National Nurses Week, and Marquette General
has a number
of activities planned to honor its nurses. |
May 6-12 is National
Nurses Week, a time when Marquette General honors the many invaluable
and hard-working nurses on staff within its hospital, outlying clinics
and home health agencies throughout the U.P. This year, Nurses Week
coincides with Mother’s Day, offering the perfect opportunity
to highlight one of the health system’s valuable resources:
mother-daughter nurses.
Tina began her nursing career as an aide in the Upper
Michigan Rehabilitation Center at MGH. As a college student, she took the job as a means of experiencing
the medical world. Tina gained something even more priceless, though: a new
career.
“ I really was just trying to broaden my medical knowledge for my studies
in radiation oncology,” Tina said. “But after only a few weeks, I
had fallen in love with nursing. I knew without a doubt that it was what I wanted
to do with the rest of my life. It was meant to be.”
Soon after, Tina changed her major to pursue a Licensed Practical Nursing (LPN)
degree. She eventually left the rehab department and took a position with the
MGH cardiac intermediate care unit.
“ I love the fast-paced style of critical care nursing,” said Tina,
who received her LPN license two years ago and is currently on leave from her
job while working toward her RN degree at San Juan College in New Mexico. “You’re
able to do a lot of one-on-one patient care, which is one of the most gratifying
parts of the job.”
Jonell couldn’t agree more. In the cardiac ultrasound department, she
is responsible for providing sedation for cardiac ultrasounds, stress testing,
contrast echocardiograms and other similar procedures.
“ The best part of my job is working with patients,” Jonell said. “I’m
able to provide bedside care, attend to their concerns and follow up on their
questions. My job is about total patient care, and I love it.”
Jonell and Tina comprise just one of several sets of mother-daughter nurses
at Marquette General, which also includes registered nurse Cindy Schroeder
and her daughter Jennifer.
Like Tina, Jennifer Schroeder didn’t grow up dreaming of being a nurse.
“ I’ve always loved helping people, but it wasn’t until midway
through high school that I started considering nursing as a career opportunity,” Jennifer
said.
Currently a nurse’s aide on the surgical unit and a full-time student
at Northern Michigan University, Jennifer hopes to continue working for MGH
after completing the RN program next year.
“ My current job requires me to do a little bit of everything — giving
baths, helping patients walk…basically helping people,” Jennifer
said. “That’s why I love it so much. I get to work with patients
all day long.”
Jennifer’s mom, Cindy, couldn’t be prouder.
“ I was so excited when Jennifer told me that she was going to pursue nursing,” said
Cindy, a certified wound/ostomy care nurse at Infectious Disease Specialists
in the Peninsula Medical Center. “I’ve always loved my job, and I
think she recognized that.”
Like her daughter, Cindy’s most enjoyable aspect of her job is the patient
interaction.
“ In my job, I’m able to spend a lot of time with each of my patients,
which fosters a very close-knit atmosphere,” Cindy said. “The people
I work with every day — both patients and co-workers — are ones I
like spending time with.”
Having both worked for MGHS for more than 20 years, Jonell and Cindy can easily
understand why their daughters have chosen to follow in their footsteps.
“ The field of nursing, especially in a state-of-the-art health system,
opens up a lot of doors,” Cindy said. “There are countless departments,
specialties and locations that my daughter can choose from. She’ll never
be bored.”
Jonell agrees.
“The community here at Marquette General is close-knit and comfortable.
It was a great place for Tina to begin her career,” she said.
For more information about the many diverse nursing career opportunities available
at MGHS, call Dan DeRosia, RN, Employment Manager, at 225-4935 or 800-562-9853,
ext. 4935.
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