L+M Physician Friday -- Nurses' Edition

On ‘Physician Friday’ we typically give you the opportunity to learn more about one of the members of the L+M medical staff.

This Friday, however, we’re mixing it up a bit – in honor of National Nursing Week.

We’ve asked a few of our physicians to share their thoughts about our nurses and the job they do.

Here's what they had to say.

Dr. Anita Hwang, Ophthalmologist

“Being a new doctor at L+M, the nurses have been so welcoming and so helpful. When I perform surgery at the Pequot Health Center, a lot of my patients who are there for the first time will say what a wonderful experience it is. They say how the nurses are so calming and so attentive, and that just makes me beam, because I’m part of L+M, as well. They’re all very, very dedicated to patient care. And they’re fun, too. It’s also a very collegial environment. There’s definitely great camaraderie.”

Dr. Robert J. Keltner, Pulmonologist

In my field, with pulmonary and critical care, the nurses that staff the ICU and CCU function essentially the way fellows or junior-attending physicians would function in a major medical center. They see the patients all the time, and they take care of things. They make calls when necessary, but they keep the patients alive and get them better. They’re just superb people, and I couldn’t do my job without them.

A number of times they’ve picked up things that have resulted in literally saving patients lives. The first time I got here, I said, ‘Boy, this is a crew that’s unlike anything I’ve ever worked with before,’ because they were so good and so independent and knew what they were doing. I can only say good things about them because they really just make people better, and they save lives. It sounds hokey, but it’s the god’s honest truth.”

Dr. Honghui Feng, Chairman of Anesthesiology

“I spend a lot of time with nurses in the pain clinic at MTU (the Minor Treatment Unit). They are the best nursing unit I have experienced. Our patients praise them highly. They are efficient, patient-care oriented and most productive.”

Dr. Ken Donovan, Hospitalist

"As a Hospitalist, I spend a significant portion of the day interacting with the amazing nurses here at L+M, and I have always found their input to be vital to the care of our patients. The nurses are bright, energetic and fully engaged in the process of patient-centered care."

Dr. Oliver Mayorga, Chairman of Emergency Medicine

“Our Emergency Department nurses are some of the most compassionate and skilled nurses that I've had the privilege of working with. Only as a team are we able to provide the level of care we do in the ED.”