“It’s probably one of the most rewarding careers anyone could have a desire to do,” Shriver said. “I have had no regrets.”

After 39 years, Shriver is retiring as chief executive nurse at UnityPoint Health — Trinity Regional Medical Center. Her last day was May 10.

Fenoglio, who was previously the interim chief executive officer and chief nursing officer at Cherokee Regional Medical Center, is succeeding Shriver.

Shriver helped Fenoglio with the transition.

-Messenger photo by Chad Thompson
Deb Shriver, retired chief executive nurse of UnityPoint Health — Trinity Regional Medical Center, visits with Staci Olson, nurse manager of critical care, respiratory therapy and sleep, middle, and Julie Fenoglio, who is Shriver’s replacement.

“We are going through projects,” Fenoglio said earlier. “Some of the new things coming along, meeting some of the managers and people I will be working with and keeping up with service excellence.”

Shriver added, “We are looking at where their goals are and meeting together with people when we can.”

Fenoglio, a native of St. Cloud, Minnesota, has appreciated Shriver’s help.

“That handoff seems a little smoother when Deb is here to help them through and I am here at the same time,” Fenoglio said. “It’s nice that they have had such a consistent presence with her throughout the years.”

•

-Messenger photo by Chad Thompson
Deb Shriver, retired chief executive nurse at UnityPoint Health - Trinity Regional Medical Center, left, shares a laugh with Julie Fenoglio, who is succeeding her in the chief executive nurse role at the hospital.

Shriver got the idea to enter nursing when she was in high school in Lakota.

“We had a school nurse who I talked to about what it’s like to be a nurse and I decided that was the path I was going to go,” Shriver said. “At that point I hadn’t really been exposed to hospitals or what nursing was all about.”

She married in 1980 and moved to Fort Dodge.

“I have been here ever since.”

Fenoglio, who has more than 25 years of health care experience, initially pursued a career in accounting.

But she had a change of heart.

“I always wanted to get into health care and be a nurse,” Fenoglio said. “When I got out of high school, I was in accounting. I went into accounting for some strange reason and got into the business aspect. But when my brother passed away at 21, I decided life is too short and I wanted to get into something I wanted to do the rest of my life. That really was the turning point for getting into nursing.”

With their combined experiences, Shriver and Fenoglio have seen a lot of change health care.

“We didn’t have any computers,” Shriver said. “All documentation was done on paper, including physicians’ documentation and all the orders.”

She added, “The complexity of the patients is much higher now than it was 40 years ago.”

Fenoglio also remembers a time of little technology.

“Neither one of us had computers when we started,” she said. “It was all paper.”

Technology has been a benefit in making some aspects of the job easier, according to Shriver. Assistive carts and lifting equipment used to help patients is one example.

“Those kinds of things have been really nice in helping both the patient and staff,” she said.

She used to have to manually count the drips on an IV.

“We had very few IV pumps. You counted the drips manually and went around and checked them all every hour. Now they are on pumps and you can set your pumps. You still have to check them, but you don’t have to manually count drips.”

Barcodes is another advancement.

“The medication dispensing systems are all different,” she said. “Those are all barcoded and you scan the patient’s wrist. In the old days, you didn’t have the scanning devices to make sure the medication matches up.”

Shriver said the most important aspect of nursing has nothing to do with technology, though.

“Technology has to occur to keep up with the changes,” she said. “But the key to nursing care is that compassion. Technology doesn’t change that key element.”

•

Shriver started out as a staff nurse at Trinity Regional Medical Center on 3North, she said. She worked there for four years before the hospital initiated a home care program.

“I was one of three nurses to start the home program here,” Shriver said.

Later, Shriver worked at Iowa Central Community College.

“I taught medical surgery and behavioral health to second-year students there, and clinical,” Shriver said. “But I worked home care at the hospital on weekends.”

Fenoglio said part of being a good nurse is helping others feel comfortable.

“You are building that relationship with the patient in helping them to feel less anxious and being there for that patient,” she said. “Being there for them and that empathy — explaining what’s going on and helping them through those situations has been so rewarding to me. think it helps the family and helps the patient’s anxiety when you can help them through those situations.”

Checking on patients is key, she said. It was something Fenoglio learned when she worked in neurotrauma.

“When they are out of ICU and they are more aware of what’s going on, I would let them know, ‘this is what we are going to do, but know that when you are sleeping I will be checking on you,” Fenoglio said. “They taught us that you need to let the patient know you will be there and checking on them. It helps take the edge off and they trust that you’ll be there — and that’s why we are here.”

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In her new role, Fenoglio will oversee the nursing practice for UnityPoint Health — Trinity Regional Medical Center. About 270 nurses work throughout the Fort Dodge organization.

Shriver said, “Ensuring our patients have a positive experience and that staff find this a great place to work and that we achieve quality in all that we do,” is the goal of the job.

Throughout her time at the hospital, Shriver is most proud of her involvement in the Pathways to Excellence designation.

“The level of engagement from the staff and leaders in that process,” she said. “The pride that they have.”

Nursing offers a lot of flexibility for employees, Shriver said.

“Nursing is a great profession because you can work full time or part time or work in different areas which seems like a whole new job,” Shriver said. “Sometimes it’s better to work nights or work weekends. That’s the unique thing about nursing, that isn’t available in a lot of other careers. There’s a lot of flexibility.”

Nurses can work in many different areas too.

“Forty years ago most nurses worked in hospitals,” Shriver said. “I think that’s still true today, but there’s a lot more opportunities in outpatient areas, home care, hospice, that didn’t exist 40 years ago.”

She added, “Some nurses go into one area to get experience and they don’t know what is their true passion and they find that along the way.”

•

Shriver said retirement is a mixed bag.

“It’s bittersweet. There’s things I am looking forward to, but I am going to miss all of the people and the relationships.”

Fenoglio said she will build on Shriver’s success.

“I am just excited to get to know everyone here and work with them,” Fenoglio said. “Keep them growing with the program Deb started … so people can stay in the community to receive the care they need.”

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