Earlier this year, we asked staff members to tell us why they were proud to be part of CoxHealth and the response was overwhelming. We’re featuring a few of the best stories in CoxHealth Connection and here on the blog.
Sharon McLain, Labor and Delivery, Cox South
In the fifteen years Sharon McLain has been a nurse, she’s worked in units in Missouri and Florida, but she says she’s never seen teamwork like what she now experiences daily in Labor and Delivery at Cox South.
“It’s a different atmosphere here – our doctors, nurses, techs and Environmental Services crews are all working together to do the best for our patients,” she says. “Everybody pulls together to get the best quality of care for our patients.”
McLain says physicians and nurses work closely together and efforts like TeamSTEPPS and reorientation training that includes the entire team help foster a collaborative environment.
“The doctors trust us and we trust them. Everyone has a sense of putting the patient first.”
That patient focus is what originally drew McLain to nursing. When she entered the field, she knew she wanted to be at the bedside.
She spent time in orthopedics and on 700 East at Cox South, but since nursing school she had been interested in working in Labor and Delivery. It took a few times applying, but when she got the opportunity to join the L and D team in 2009, it was a dream come true.
“This is the best place to be in the hospital, surrounded by happy babies and happy mommies,” she says. “Everybody here loves their job.”
She loves the babies and being part of a special moment in a family’s life. She likes seeing a new dad’s tears of joy and she’s proud of the care she provides for new moms.
“The times when I am able to act as a real advocate for my patient are times when I feel like I’m in the right place.”
She says CoxHealth is the right place to practice, both for the teamwork and for our sense of innovation.
“We’re always looking for ways to improve and ways to be the best,” she says, noting our pursuit of Magnet status and L and D’s “Show-Me 5” baby-friendly hospital project. “We’re always trying to keep climbing and we’re never satisfied with the status quo.”
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