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Denise Duffy, LPN
Denise Duffy, LPN
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Meet Denise Duffy, LPN. Denise is a member of our
ventilator program team and a dedicated nurse. She is
one of the many talented staff members who have worked to
make Northeast Center for Special Care renowned for its
quality of care, rehabilitation and successful outcomes.
Denise tell her story in her own words:
I was born and raised in Kingston, NY, and have lived in
Ulster County all of my life. We had a close family when I
was growing up. I have an older brother and younger sister.
My father was in retail and later became a realtor. My
mother was a nurse.
I became a nurse sort of indirectly. After high school I went to college to study journalism but
I left to raise a family. Later, when I returned to work I
was employed in an
explosives factory. The company I worked for made the kinds of explosives
that they use in construction to move large masses of
ground. It was interesting but not what I wanted to do with
the rest of my life. As a second income I started doing
child-care, this is when my own children were young. I
really liked child-care and I ended up doing it full-time.
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"I love the mission
here at Northeast Center and that we are focused on the
rehabilitation and reintegration of our Resident-Neighbors
back to their communities."
- Denise Duffy, LPN.
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I
didn't become a nurse because of my mother, rather, I decided to
pursue nursing because when I was doing child-care; I found
that I loved working with people and I
decided that I wanted
to do more. I felt that becoming a nurse would give me
more opportunities to work with people. It was then
that I decided to enrolled in
nursing school. I liked the idea of being able to help people
and help them get better - that seemed to be my calling.
After I finished school and became an LPN I worked in two nursing homes, I did home care
for an agency where I worked in the field
and visited clients and then I worked in a hospital in a
med-surge unit.
When I was working toward my nursing degree Northeast Center
was being developed. My nursing instructor told me about it
and I thought it would be exciting to work in a brand new
program. Since I then had experience as a nurse when Northeast
Center for Special Care opened in 1999, I applied for a
position and I was hired. I was assigned to work on our
ventilator neighborhood and I have worked there ever since.
I like working with the respiratory team because it is close
to the kind of med-surge work I did in the hospital and
I enjoy that very much.
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Denise
Duffy, LPN, and Robin Banks, CNA |
Not
long after I started working here one of our
Resident-Neighbors, a woman was admitted who was in a coma
and on a ventilator as result of an accident. She was the
first person I worked with who emerged from a coma. I
remember the first signs that she was emerging she was
moving around a lot and one day I asked her to press her
call bell and she did it! Eventually she was weaned from her
mechanical ventilator. The greatest thing was the day she was
discharged and able to go home and resume her life with her
family - she
walked out the front door of Northeast Center.
For me it's about giving our Resident-Neighbors a better
quality of life. We motivate them to work in their programs and
therapies, watching them learn how to care for themselves,
walking and talking. What's
most rewarding for me is seeing them start to do things on
their own and become more independent. I love the mission
here at Northeast Center and that we are focused on the
rehabilitation and reintegration of our Resident-Neighbors
back to their communities and families.
Some of the Resident-Neighbors I have worked with thought
they would never be able to return home but we have a
dedicated staff here and we all work hard. Our Neighbors
surprise themselves at how well they are able to do. Over
the years here I've seen many of them weaned from a
ventilator and eventually decannulated and they were able to
return home where they have done well. Afterwards of course
I always miss them and their families, but it's so rewarding
to know that what I have done as a nurse has contributed to
their success. Those are the kinds of experiences that make
working here so worthwhile and satisfying and makes me glad
I am a nurse.
Right
now I am busy remodeling my house. My children are grown, my
son is going to go to college to become a history teacher.
My daughter is currently in college. She is majoring in
biology and secondary education. I think she chose biology
because of my being a nurse. Both my children were always
reading my nursing textbooks when they were growing up. I
was always involved in their activities and I'm very proud of them.
For a nurse who wants a meaningful career I would tell them
to come to Northeast Center for Special Care and try it out,
especially if you are someone looking to be challenged. Most
who come to work here stay here. I have wonderful colleagues
that I work with and I have found some of the best teamwork
in my professional career to be right here. If you want to
be a member of a strong team then this is the place to be.
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