Loretta Aurand
May 2021
Loretta
Aurand
,
RN, MSN
Medical/Surgical/Obstetrics
Evangelical Community Hospital
Lewisburg
,
PA
United States

 

 

 

Loretta was known for her “caring touches” with her staff, involving them in decision-making and processes. First and foremost, she was always patient-centric.
In the words of Mother Teresa, “it’s not about how much you do, but how much love you put into what you do that counts.” Loretta is the example of Mother Teresa’s words in both her personal and professional life. She grew in her love of Nursing, graduating from a diploma program, elevating herself to a professional degree, then to a Master’s in nursing. Loretta’s career at Evangelical was a long and winding path, starting in the Medical-Surgical area, moving into a love of Maternal-Child nursing, growing into Administration as a House Supervisor, and finally moving back to her passion as the Director of the Family Place. Throughout her career, Loretta never lost sight of the fact that she wanted to lead a team of professional nurses in a discipline that she loved. I can personally attest to Loretta’s love and passion for nursing as she was my labor nurse for the birth of my daughter. She was kind, patient, and quiet. I knew that no matter what happened she oversaw me, my husband, and our baby. The comfort and sense of security provided to me by Loretta are why Loretta is the hallmark of an excellent obstetrical nurse. Loretta’s can-do attitude comes with honesty, dedication, and commitment to everything she does in her life. She returned for her master’s degree with the idea she would like to teach in her retirement yet turning it into a position as Director of the Family Place when an opportunity arose. Loretta’s loyalty to Evangelical is evident through her continued work to assist the House Supervisors as needed during the pandemic. Loretta was known for her “caring touches” with her staff, involving them in decision-making and processes. First and foremost, she was always patient-centric. She placed quality and safety above all else and was instrumental in projects such as the Family Nurse Partnership, Keystone-10, and other quality initiatives which led us to a 5-star Hospital rating. Her previous work as a House Supervisor was outstanding, she was pragmatic, calm, and was rarely rattled by others. She was a true patient advocate and an advocate for our novice nurses. The examples above are only a fraction of what Loretta achieved in her 40 plus year career at Evangelical. Her career did not impede her faithfulness to her family, her husband, and her beautiful children and grandchildren. But most importantly her commitment to her faith in God. To paraphrase in Mother Teresa’s words “Loretta is faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies.”