Brenda started working with Haven in 2015. She has worked for both our home health and hospice branches and is currently a hospice RN. She sat down with us and told us about her time so far as part of the Haven family.
What was Haven like when you started?
It was on the ground up as far as the Hospice part. Kim had been hired and she was starting to look for nurses. She knew I wasn’t quite happy where I was at, because they didn’t have the same vision and values that I did. So, Kim put a little bug in my ear and I came to interview with her and got hired. I worked a cross-over between home health and hospice and me and Kim kept things going until we got our numbers up so we could hire another person, and then another. So, we’ve kind of seen it grow from the ground up.
What drew you to Haven?
Their values. Because, to me, a patient and their family, they’re going through a rough time with the end of life, you can’t just go in and do a quick visit and go out the door. Sometimes there’s other dynamics or other issues going on and sometimes you need to give them a little more support or do a little more teaching with them. Or someone may be dying very quickly when you get them and you’re doing a very intensive training with them and you can’t push them. So, John was very good to allow us that time to spend with those patients, and he still does it. Patients are primary in his book, so that’s a good thing, that’s what drew me here.
What has made you stay with Haven?
The same reason. He is out for the employees and for the patients and their families and he’s not just after the money part of it. That has to come to operate, but he does allow the patients and families to have the time that they need. He thinks about the employees and he tries to meet their needs as best he can.
What has been the biggest change over your time here?
The amount of growth in such a short period of time. And I think that’s because of his values and his vision. Kim is a great supervisor for hospice and she tries her best to keep everybody comfortable. She will try to resolve any kind of problem. If there’s an issue that needs to be discussed with John, she does that so everybody’s on the same page and we have good teams that work together.
What is your favorite memory of working at Haven?
It’s the picnics. My great grandson loves the picnics, and they do such a great job. It’s a time for all the employees to get together and talk, because even with COVID we don’t get to do that as much as we used to. So, that is my favorite one right there.