New Nurse at 53 Years Young

Andrea Griswold, RN in Pediatrics at Dell Children’s Medical Center, graduated as a nurse four years ago at age 53. “We have a very cohesive team and really work well together,” she said. “There has never been a time where I don’t feel someone has my back. We are supportive of each other through the good and the bad, both at work and personally.”

About the range of ages in nursing, Andrea said, “I’ve been so impressed in working with younger nurses. They don’t have a lot of life experience but bring everything to this job and are very attentive to these patients. We had a situation where an infant was not going to make it and these two young nurses just took turns holding the baby and singing to her. I told them ‘She knows you have loved her well and you’ve made her brief time here worthwhile.’ To see brand-new nurses have that capacity at that age was inspiring.

“There have been other times when we get to know and love a patient and there’s an unfortunate outcome. In one such instance, the circumstances around the loss of a child had everybody really shaken up by it. We have a Center for Resiliency who did a debrief and everyone came and was really honest and it gave us a chance to regroup. We had chaplains, social workers, doctors and counselors there. When you hear all the perspectives, it makes the situation easier to take.”

When asked what a really good day looks like as a nurse, Andrea said, “I feel good when I’ve done my best for the patient and sometimes parents will say, ‘Thank you, your help made a difference.’ Other times it’s a great day when I can help a coworker. A newer nurse had to get a blood draw from a 10-month-old baby and wasn’t sure he could do it. I told him he could and we went through the whole thing and he got the blood work. He was so happy and I felt like a proud mama,” she said. “We really focus on comfort care, which is doing what you can to keep the child calm and minimize any pain. And the patient did not even whimper throughout the process.”

Andrea also talked about what it’s like to work at a teaching hospital. “I love working with new residents,” she said. “You get to meet new people all the time from all over the country and world, coming through our hospital. There is a new set of residents every July. It’s refreshing and keeps your skills sharp in explaining processes that are brand new to them, as far as how things should be done.”

Sometimes the work extends outside of the walls of the hospital. “The biggest boost I got, where I felt a connection to the mission and felt proud to work for Ascension Texas, was at the Circuit of the Americas vaccine clinics,” she said. “It was great to see all the people volunteering from all walks of life from our hospitals and clinics. It was great to witness Ascension Texas making a difference in the community.”

About choosing to be a nurse, Andrea said, “I know it’s the right profession for me. It was later in life that I found my calling in nursing, but I look forward to going to work every day. I know that people in the hospital are dealing with horrible situations and I’ve done the best I can to make it a little better,” she said. “No two days are the same and I learn something new every day. And I enjoy meeting new people and passing on the knowledge I’ve gained.”