Some
might say that Norma Curry is a CoxHealth institution. As an Administrative
Director of Nursing, Curry is one of the health care system’s top professionals
– but back in 1968, she was simply a student entering the Burge School of
Nursing (now Cox College). She didn’t know that 47 years later, she’d have
risen through the ranks, spending her entire career in one place.
But
on Dec. 24, nearly five decades after it began, Curry is closing the CoxHealth
chapter of her life. She’s retiring, taking a legacy of memories and leaving
huge shoes to fill.
Choosing
her career
Curry
knew from an early age that nursing was what she wanted to do. “It’s just
something that was in my heart,” says Curry. “From the time I was ever asked,
(nursing was) all I ever thought of.”
 |
| Norma Curry in a yearbook photo from 1971. |
In
high school, she took classes geared toward that career. And after graduation,
the only school she applied to was Burge School of Nursing. “I entered the
school in ‘68, which was over on the North campus, and literally never left,”
says Curry. She graduated in 1971, and began working as a staff nurse in the
Cardiac Care Unit (CCU) all while working on her BSN, which she obtained in 1972.
That
role in the CCU, and later in the Emergency Department, also gave Curry her
first management experience and led to her
promotion to evening supervisor. Things just
snowballed from there. “Then from evening supervisor to dayshift assistant
director to director to administrative director,” says Curry of her career
progression.
Looking
back
That
experience has showed Curry more than just how to be a good manager: It’s given
her a first-hand look at how health care has changed over the years. She
recalls things, years ago, that were different – such as admitting patients to
the hospital to run tests. “That was the common, totally acceptable thing
to do,” she says. “So you came in for your checkup and your battery of tests
and you might be in the hospital two or three days.”
She
recalls the construction of Cox Medical Center South in the early 1980s, which
was initially designed to be a niche women and children’s hospital. But in the
2.5 years it took to build the hospital, Springfield had changed enough to
warrant more expansive services on the south side of town. They decided to add
services such as adult medical-surgical and critical care units and “see if the
beds would fill,” says Curry. They did. “Then we just opened unit after unit
after unit and saw the need grow, and never looked back again.”
But
despite the innovation that came with a new hospital, Curry recalls some things
that took a little longer to modernize. One example is the immortalized
all-white nurses’ uniforms, which was never complete without a white cap. “I
still have two places on my head where the bobby pins went that don’t have as
much hair,” says Curry. “It was heavy, it was awkward. And it got knocked
around a lot when you were actually giving patients care.”
Despite
its tieback to nursing’s proud history, that’s one thing that Curry wasn’t
sorry to see go by the wayside. “You finally had to break that mold and realize
that you’re a professional, regardless of what you wear – and whether or not
you have that precious, blessed cap on your head,” says Curry.
Personal
journey
As
the days fade away, Curry knows what she’ll miss the most about CoxHealth. “The
stress? No. The long hours? No. Being on call? But the people. The
relationships,” she says.
After
all, those relationships have had nearly five decades to grow and develop –
offering a network of support, such as when tragedy struck through the death of
her 15-year-old daughter. “I just will never forget how kind and caring people
were during a time in my life when I didn’t know how I could put one foot in
front of the other,” Norma says.
She also recalls the new graduates she hired,
and the joy that comes from watching them rise through the ranks. “And now one
is going to walk into this office and sit in that chair,” says Curry, pointing
to the seat behind her desk. “Those are friendships and relationships that
couldn’t have been forged any other way than to just be here and be a part of
this.”
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