Kelli Anderson, RN, MSN, MBA, CRRN, director of nursing for Madonna’s Specialty Hospital in Lincoln, says being a nurse is more than just doing a job. It’s truly a calling – one she’s dedicated her life to. She’s been caring for patients at Madonna for 25 years.
“I never really knew what kind of nursing I wanted to go into,” Anderson said. “I think in nursing school, you don’t get a lot of exposure to rehab nursing. I started as a support RN at Madonna in 2000 and got exposed to all the areas of the facility, ended up working as a staff nurse in the Specialty Hospital.”
Working as a support nurse throughout the hospital allowed Anderson to learn more about all the levels of care Madonna provides and the importance of each one in patient outcomes. She found that patients in the Specialty Hospital, Madonna’s most medically complex patients with high acuity needs, was the population she loved caring for.
“Nobody plans to be here,” Anderson said. “So our role is to help them accept where they are and help them move on from there. I think as a rehab nurse, you have a lot of opportunities to see patients get better, get stronger and appreciate themselves as they are at that time.”
After a few years of bedside nursing in the Specialty Hospital, Anderson became a nurse therapist and charge nurse, then moved to a clinical nursing director role. Now, she’s been the director of nursing for the Specialty Hospital in Lincoln for four years.
Being driven and taking every opportunity that presented itself is how Anderson continued to advance her career. While her current position moves her a little further away from direct patient care, Anderson says it’s allowed her to build relationships with staff and focus on creating a positive work environment. She says she still finds opportunities to work with patients and their families, so she gets the best of both worlds.
Opportunities to grow, flexibility and the people she works with have been among the many reasons Anderson has stayed at Madonna through the years.
“I think Madonna truly is a family,” she said. “You see our core values in what we do every day.”
Anderson’s advice to young nurses is remember what drew them to the profession.
“Remember why you became a nurse,” Anderson said. “Remember, you’re here for the patients, and stay focused on that. As long as you’re doing what is best for the patients and working hard to help them succeed, you will succeed along with them.”