Nurse Residency at Northside: Lisa’s journey of chasing her passion and giving back

After delivering triplets at Northside Hospital, Lisa knew she wanted to give back to the hospital and community as a nurse. 14 years later, she started her nursing degree. In 2020, she joined the Northside Family as a nurse resident. This is her story:

“Congratulations! You’re pregnant with triplets!”

When Lisa heard these words in 2003, she knew everything was about to change. Her family of three was about to become a family of six. While Lisa had a really good experience with the delivery of her first child at another Atlanta hospital, it was Northside Hospital’s reputation for delivering and caring for premature babies that led her to change care providers.

“Since this [premature babies] was very likely for us, I changed my OB/GYN to one that could deliver at Northside. During my pregnancy with the triplets, I spent a short time on the high-risk pregnancy (HRP) unit and I was impressed with my care,” Lisa shared.

At 29 ½ weeks gestation, Lisa delivered the triplets on Mother’s Day. She reflected, “This was quite a gift! I knew our premature babies were in the very best hands at Northside Hospital’s NICU. One-by-one, they came home at four weeks, six weeks, and eight weeks of age. They each had their own challenges at birth that they were able to overcome and they are now healthy, 16-year-old teenagers.”

Shortly after they all came home, Lisa realized the experience had re-ignited something in her: her passion to become a nurse. When Lisa had first attended college, she’d studied nursing. But at the influence of others, she ended up changing her major and pursuing a different path. Yet right after bringing her three babies home, Lisa knew she wanted to give back and care for patients the way she had been cared for at Northside.

Knowing that the timing might not be best while she had three babies at home, Lisa took other steps to assuage her desire to help others. She joined a team of volunteers at Northside Hospital called “Boredom Busters.” She says, “Our duties included going to the HRP floor on a regular basis to bring magazines, crafts, and comfort to moms on bed rest. I was able to encourage them since I had been on 16 weeks of bed rest, as well, during my pregnancy.”

Then, in 2017, when all four of Lisa’s kids were older and well-established in their schools, the timing finally felt right for Lisa to go back to school to earn her nursing degree. To her younger self, Lisa might say, “Follow your heart and go into nursing.” But she couldn’t be happier where she is now. And she recognizes the benefits that came from taking a “non-traditional” path to get here. She says, “I have many life experiences that play a role in my success as a nurse and caring for patients.”

In 2020, Lisa joined the Northside Family as a Labor & Delivery nurse resident. Our nurse residency programs are designed for recent grads and newly-licensed nurses, including second-career nurses, as well as experienced nurses interested in switching specialties and nurses that have recently completed a reentry program. Lisa is proof that you can pursue nursing as a second career – in fact, it’s much more common than one might think!

About her decision to get her nursing degree, Lisa says, “It was one of the best decisions I’ve made and I am looking forward to the next leg of my journey. I will finally be where I have longed to be and that is in Women’s Services, caring for pregnant moms and their babies – back at Northside Hospital! I can’t think of a better way to give back to a hospital and community that gave so much to me, than to pay it forward.”

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