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2008 Nurse of the Year Awards |
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Congratulations to the 2008 Nurse of the Year: Peter Hall
Meet Peter (Biographical sketch excerpted from his Application Statement)
“I came into critical care nursing via an unconventional route. After obtaining a BA degree in English, I decided to pursue a degree in nursing because, in that way I figured, my life could actually embody the noble qualities that I had found so inspiring in all those books I had read. So, I went back to school and got an AAS in Nursing and spent most of my early years as a nurse working on locked psychiatric units back in New York City. At that time, still uncertain of the path I was on much less the one I wanted to follow, I enrolled in NYU and obtained a Masters in Public Administration. With my new degree in hand, I elevated myself to the 31st floor of a Manhattan office building where I supervised a nationwide psychiatric utilization review program, but not before I squeezed in a quick year and a half as an ICU nurse.
It was the psych UR work that brought me to San Diego where I became the Director of Case Management at a South Bay psych hospital. Things were good, I appeared to be on a sensible career path, but something didn’t sit just right inside of me. The little detour I had taken through the world of ICU nursing had left behind a spark that refused to be extinguished. Then one day, I was at a training session for nurses from various areas of the hospital. There were a group of ICU nurses sitting across the table and it suddenly occurred to me that I was meant to be over there with them.
I have been an ICU nurse for twelve years now. I love being an ICU nurse and I love UCSD. Out of all the hospitals I have worked at, I have never encountered another with such a rich culture of diversity, service, learning and clinical distinction. Nurses thrive here and I have become a far better nurse through the support and resources that surround me. This is a place filled with remarkable nurses.
I have taken advantage of opportunities for growth that have been afforded me at UCSD to both develop an expertise in the advanced modes of treatment that are used here and to return the favor by mentoring newer nurses. The qualities of autonomy and leadership have been cultivated in me through the supportive environment that exists on our floor and now I am able to work, frequently, in the capacities of charge nurse, preceptor, and rapid response nurse. I have served on our education committee for two years, one as a chairperson, and that allowed me to develop as a resource for the staff. I even have had the chance to co-author an article on precepting, with Patty Graham and Shannon Sigurdson, that appeared in a major nursing journal in the spring of 2007.
The one endeavor that brings me the greatest satisfaction extends beyond institutional boundaries and into the community. A personal tragedy in my own life, involving one of my family members, led to my introduction to a program, sponsored by the San Diego Community College District, called the Acquired Brain Injury Program. This is a wonderful, deeply important resource for people who have suffered strokes and traumatic brain injuries. When the ABI entered my life, I immediately realized that it completes the circle for our patients with brain injuries. It takes them from the door of the hospital down the long road of recovery. Consequently, I began lobbying on its behalf at the medical center and have begun the process of connecting these good people with our staff so that we can extend our client service with a quality program to help the families of our brain injury patients long after they have left our floor.”
Words of Recommendation for Peter:
- From Patty Graham:
During my 27 years of nursing practice I have had the opportunity to work with many quality nurses. None, however, have impressed me to the degree that our 2008 Nurse of the Year has. This candidate exemplifies all that a professional nurse should be. The UCSD Forces of Magnetism are evident in all of this candidate’s many nursing roles, including:
- Rapid Response Team RN
- Code Blue Team RN
- ICU Charge Nurse
- Clinical Preceptor
- Performance Improvement Chair
- Member of Education Committee
- Published author of both nursing literature and fiction
- Community advocate and patient education leader
- From Peter's Manager:
The thing I admire most about this remarkable individual is an indomitable spirit and positive energy. One day Peter spent almost an entire shift running between multiple rapid response and code blue emergency calls. When he returned to the floor, there was not a word of complaint. Instead he had 5 great ideas for improvement and started making progress on two of them the following day. This enthusiasm is indicative of the tremendous injection of positive energy that we enjoy every day, having him as part of our team.”
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