Comments from VNA Staff Members

"It's almost like a calling, like something that pulls you. It's more than just a job.  If you're feeling that this is 'just a job,' you're not in the right place."

"I joined the VNA 24 years ago and I was so proud to come here. The VNA had the reputation of hiring only 'the cream of the crop.''"

"The VNA is a community — a diverse community — of team players who really care about each other, celebrate each other, share with each other, and support each other.  There's always someone here you can check in with, ask a question, compare notes, laugh or cry."

"You learn not to judge people, to respect everyone, every culture and every family.  People have different ways of dealing with hardship, with pain and with illness.  We can't put our agendas on them.  If you go in with a good attitude and a smile, you can develop a relationship of trust."

"Being in the patient's home is totally different than caring for them in a hospital. Here I can see patients over months, I can see them recover. I can see the impact I have on their actual lives."

"Patients teach me all the time about grace, acceptance, courage.  They teach me to really pay attention to the quality of my life."

"It's way beyond 'just nursing.'  See this little crocheted flower?  It was given to me by a patient's family - his sister.  The brother and sister were caring for their older brother - doing everything for him, lovingly.  Because of our services, they could keep him at home.  So they gave me this little gift.  This is what I mean by 'way beyond.'  You're a friend, advisor, teacher, advocate, confidante, and almost part of the family.  This flower is a little token but it means so much to me - this is what it means to be a visiting nurse."

"This kind of nursing is totally different from anything I've experienced.  Seeing patients get well in their own homes is so gratifying!  I've discovered new skills and it's exciting to learn and meet new people."

"The VNA represents a value system that I can commit to wholeheartedly."

"Caring opens you to really see, to really understand, and to really accept who other people are.  Caring connects you, across differences, to the humanity of other person.  Caring inspires you to believe that you can and you will make a difference for the better."

"Patients are depending on us for their functioning and for their futures, and I take that responsibility to heart."

"People are truly amazing.  We are seeing people in unbelievable stages of crisis, and how some people can manage this with such grace and dignity, how families can come together -- it's a privilege to learn from them.  It's an inspiration for me as a person, and for my profession."

"I tell everyone that I am who I am today because of my work at the VNA.  I would never have developed the empathy and knowledge I have without this experience -- being welcomed into the homes of so many different families and caring for patients in so many different life circumstances."

"I stay here because I really enjoy and respect the people I work with."

"A big part of the job satisfaction for me is the ability to give one-on-one care.  When you're in the patient's home, you can concentrate completely on that person, no distractions.  And you're able to interact with the family as well."

"We welcome everyone's experience, we share ideas, we brainstorm about ways to help patients and families.  If someone has a question, I put it out on voicemail and other staff members respond with their ideas.  Even though everyone's out on the road most of the day, we have a strong team feeling."

"Being on the road can be tough.  Torrential rains - you do your best to say dry, but you're wet, your pants legs are wet, you feet are wet.  Snowstorms - finding a place to park, getting in and out of the car, climbing over snow banks can be a challenge.  In the heat of the summer, you can be sweating to beat the band.  On the other hand, you're out in the fresh air, you're in charge of your workday, and there's an adventure behind every door!  You learn what to carry with you, you learn where the clean public bathrooms are, you learn every shortcut from one side of town to the other."   

"I like working here because you can express yourself without hesitation.  Everyone understands the need to 'vent' sometimes about all the regulations, then everyone gets down to it and figures out a way to make it work."

"Home care is where it's going to be in the future.  Hospitals stays are short, there are more and more outpatient procedures, and what we're able to do in the home, technologically, keeps advancing."

"I love, love, love what I do!  I feel that the patient's success is my success too, and I'm sincerely happy for them when they have a good outcome."

"I often go home and say to myself, 'I really made a difference today.'  That's good.  That's  rewarding.  I think I was really meant to do this kind of nursing. I can't imagine doing anything else.  I could do this forever."

"I used to be the shyest person.  But I'm comfortable here.  And when I'm comfortable, and I know what I'm doing, then I'm confident and I do my best work."

"I work with great people.  I often tell new nurses, 'Do you see how friendly everyone is to you on the first day you walked in?   Well, I've been here for 13 years and they're still that friendly!'"

"Because I've been a VNA nurse, I have no fear.  Really, I feel confident going into any kind of new situation - not only to work, but in my personal life as well."