Adena RN honored

Michelle Holdren, RN, remembers being probably 11 or 12 years old when her grandmother, who lived with her family, had a stroke and became bedridden. "Being that I was the only daughter in the family, my mother and I took care of her," she says. In time, an elderly aunt and uncle also took refuge in her mothers' home, Holdren recalled. And caring for them became a natural part of her life, assisted by a caring and compassionate mother. "It just became a part of what we do - care for people," Holdren said. That experience resonates today in the work she does at Adena Medical Center, and was an essential ingredient in her being chosen the facility's nominee for the statewide Cameos of Caring award. The amiable Holdren, who didn't begin nursing school until she was 45, is currently a staff nurse in the Hospital's Observation Unit and received the nomination for excellence in nursing care, as well as serving as an advocate for patients and families, and exemplifying the spirit of the nursing profession. Linda Wiseman, RN, who supervises Adena's Observation Unit, said Holdren was more than deserving of the special award. "She is a caring, dedicated nurse, and thinks highly of her patients and does everything she can to provide the best patient care possible," she said. As a mentor to new nurses at Adena Medical Center and preceptor to nursing students who train at the Health System, she is an excellent role model, Wiseman said. Not surprisingly, nurses and students alike "strive to be like her because she is such a dedicated nurse," the supervisor added. Asked what makes Holdren different from other nurses, Wiseman said, "I think her heart. She has a kind, caring nature and puts patients above her own needs." On a number of occasions, patients have praised her for "going above and beyond taking care of their needs," the supervisor added. Holdren said she was humbled when she was recognized earlier this month in Columbus along with some 20 other nurses from around Ohio as recipients of the award - for doing something that comes so natural. "I give to my patients what I believe my patients should have, and what I would want my family to have," she said. It wasn't until later in her life, after becoming an emergency medical technician for the Green Township Volunteer Fire Department, that Holdren decided to pursue a nursing career. "The pleasure I obtained by serving the poor, sick and elderly of my community ignited a passion for more knowledge, skills and service." Not satisfied as a basic EMT that she was doing enough to help people and community, she went on to become an intermediate EMT. Still not satisfied that she was providing enough to others, "I had to become a nurse." "That in itself was a battle," Holdren recalled. She had to retake courses she had taken years before as a college student in order to even be approved to enroll in a nursing program. Finally, after meeting those entrance requirements, she enrolled and two years later graduated as a nurse from Ohio University in Chillicothe. But college courses and good grades, alone, don't make good nurses. "Patients don't care how much we know until they know how much we care," she emphasized. Holdren, whose husband is the associate pastor at the Living Waters Church in Kingston, also describes herself as a "spiritual nurse." "As I struggle with daily situations that demand decisions between doing what is right, ethical and moral, and what may seem the easiest, or what others want, it is integrity and an understanding of Christian values that I use to resolve this conflict." In the Observation Unit, she works with a wide assortment of patients, some of them angry and frustrated with themselves because of their medical circumstances. Holdren said she makes a point of educating patients when possible and connecting them with others who can offer support. "Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest complement, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around," she said, borrowing from the words of the late Leo Buscaglia, an author and professor in the Department of Special Education at UCLA. Along with her full-time nursing duties and her work as a mentor and preceptor, Holdren is working toward a master's degree in nursing, specializing in education and anticipates graduation from Walden University in June 2010. And, not surprisingly, she still volunteers as an EMT. "I just care about people," she said. The daughter of John and the late Nancy Uhrig, Holdren was born and raised in Chillicothe. In 1994, she married Ted Holdren and moved to Kingston and together they enjoy their five children and eleven grandchildren...with one on the way this month! She has been employed with Adena Health System since February 2007 and prior to her nursing role on Adena's Observation Unit when it opened in January 2009, she worked on both the hospital's 3A and 3B inpatient nursing floors. The Cameos of Caring was created in 1999 at the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Ellen Rudy, an Ohio State University alumna, who at the time was dean of the University of Pittsburgh's School of Nursing and is currently a visiting professor at OSU, was its principal architect. The primary purpose of the Cameos of Caring program is to honor exceptional nurses who work directly with patients at the bedside in acute care hospitals, long-term care or in ambulatory settings. The program was introduced to central Ohio in 2004. 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