Maggie Barefield
November 2024
Maggie
Barefield
,
RN
Rehab
DeTar Hospital
Victoira
,
TX
United States
Maggie was and is an excellent clinician; she has and still maintains the highest respect from all of the doctors because of her accuracy, great skills, and kind heart.
Maggie started at DeTar when she graduated from LVN school in 1979. She went to work on the Pediatrics Unit. At that time the Pedi unit was really busy, it had a three bed Pedi ICU that most of the time had 1-2 patients. We were a referral Pedi unit, instead of other smaller hospitals in the crossroads sending to Corpus, San Antonio, etc., they sent patients to DeTar. Maggie was and is an excellent clinician; she has and still maintains the highest respect from all of the doctors because of her accuracy, great skills, and kind heart.
Maggie worked full-time hours as she started RN school in 1997, along with being a full-time mother. She continued to work on the pediatrics unit during her schooling but made adjustments to fit her school schedule. This meant she rotated to Med Surg and adult ICU both when Pedi was slow or when her schedule was changed for her convenience. She graduated with her RN in 1989.
After she completed school she returned to Pediatrics FT where she worked both Pedi and Pedi ICU, most often she was in the charge nurse role.
In 1995, Maggie was asked to consider a position as House Supervisor. At that time, this was a Department Manager position. It was a huge jump from Pedi, and she thought long and hard before accepting that position. True to her pattern, she was uber-successful. She set high expectations not just for nursing staff but also for staff from all departments who are open at night. She led by example and mentored many nurses, influencing many to pursue an RN. She was respected and loved. People had tremendous loyalty to Maggie, regardless of the department they were assigned to. She worked in this position for several years.
In July of 1999, Maggie was convinced to go to 4 East as head nurse. It was our busiest, fullest floor with a waiting list most of the time, which treated every kind of illness. It was (& and probably still is) the most challenging floor. She managed over 100 employees assigned to her unit. Our earlier managers had trouble with its size. Every patient had 2-4 doctors, and the head nurse (who was often the charge nurse, too) rounded with all of them. It was too demanding, the managers couldn’t stay, and doctors started moving patients to other floors or other hospitals. So, we thought of the same person who always managed impossible challenges and approached Maggie again as we needed her skills, her excellent physician relationships, her ability to mentor and develop nurses, and her COMMON SENSE. She did it and improved services for patients and our physicians. The staff turnover we experienced was cut by more than half. Even though those nurses worked very hard, they would never think of leaving Maggie.
Her role expanded because she had been house supervisor, and she was often called on to do that as well. She mentored & developed new Nurse Managers. The med-surg and extended care unit leaders formed a close, very strong leadership group. They standardized the practices on all med surg floors, Pedi, Skilled Nursing Unit that we had, and Rehab. Nurses who floated found everything familiar with the same practices. Maggie was the unassigned but definite leader of the group. Everyone tapped her when they had a problem, needed a second opinion, etc., including Nursing Administration. We transitioned to several head nurses helping with the house. Maggie took it upon herself to have them all meet every day on their staffing, helping make sure all holes were filled, recommending policies and procedures nursing-wide, etc. She essentially was a second Associate Director. She worked with every department and unofficially became the advisor to all nurse managers hospital-wide.
When Jean Herman left nursing to go to Quality in 2004/2005, Sammie Drehr ADON depended on Maggie continuously. Maggie quickly became the leader of all House Supervisors along with Judy Hill, who was ADON. She was integrally involved with budget at all levels, productivity standard establishment, P&P development etc. When Bill approached Judy, asking her to consider going back to Cath Lab as it was failing without her, Heidi named Maggie as ADON.
If you just look at the position authorizations in Maggie’s file it shows LVN to RN working Pediatrics, then to House Supervisor, then to Head Nurse 4 East, then to rehab director, then ADON. But this belies the extensive influence she has.
Always, always, always, she did so much more, and the influence she has had not only on nursing but on patient care throughout our healthcare system is overwhelming. She was invaluable to every department—she simply was and continues to be the person other department managers go to, as they could count on her for everything.
Maggie worked full-time hours as she started RN school in 1997, along with being a full-time mother. She continued to work on the pediatrics unit during her schooling but made adjustments to fit her school schedule. This meant she rotated to Med Surg and adult ICU both when Pedi was slow or when her schedule was changed for her convenience. She graduated with her RN in 1989.
After she completed school she returned to Pediatrics FT where she worked both Pedi and Pedi ICU, most often she was in the charge nurse role.
In 1995, Maggie was asked to consider a position as House Supervisor. At that time, this was a Department Manager position. It was a huge jump from Pedi, and she thought long and hard before accepting that position. True to her pattern, she was uber-successful. She set high expectations not just for nursing staff but also for staff from all departments who are open at night. She led by example and mentored many nurses, influencing many to pursue an RN. She was respected and loved. People had tremendous loyalty to Maggie, regardless of the department they were assigned to. She worked in this position for several years.
In July of 1999, Maggie was convinced to go to 4 East as head nurse. It was our busiest, fullest floor with a waiting list most of the time, which treated every kind of illness. It was (& and probably still is) the most challenging floor. She managed over 100 employees assigned to her unit. Our earlier managers had trouble with its size. Every patient had 2-4 doctors, and the head nurse (who was often the charge nurse, too) rounded with all of them. It was too demanding, the managers couldn’t stay, and doctors started moving patients to other floors or other hospitals. So, we thought of the same person who always managed impossible challenges and approached Maggie again as we needed her skills, her excellent physician relationships, her ability to mentor and develop nurses, and her COMMON SENSE. She did it and improved services for patients and our physicians. The staff turnover we experienced was cut by more than half. Even though those nurses worked very hard, they would never think of leaving Maggie.
Her role expanded because she had been house supervisor, and she was often called on to do that as well. She mentored & developed new Nurse Managers. The med-surg and extended care unit leaders formed a close, very strong leadership group. They standardized the practices on all med surg floors, Pedi, Skilled Nursing Unit that we had, and Rehab. Nurses who floated found everything familiar with the same practices. Maggie was the unassigned but definite leader of the group. Everyone tapped her when they had a problem, needed a second opinion, etc., including Nursing Administration. We transitioned to several head nurses helping with the house. Maggie took it upon herself to have them all meet every day on their staffing, helping make sure all holes were filled, recommending policies and procedures nursing-wide, etc. She essentially was a second Associate Director. She worked with every department and unofficially became the advisor to all nurse managers hospital-wide.
When Jean Herman left nursing to go to Quality in 2004/2005, Sammie Drehr ADON depended on Maggie continuously. Maggie quickly became the leader of all House Supervisors along with Judy Hill, who was ADON. She was integrally involved with budget at all levels, productivity standard establishment, P&P development etc. When Bill approached Judy, asking her to consider going back to Cath Lab as it was failing without her, Heidi named Maggie as ADON.
If you just look at the position authorizations in Maggie’s file it shows LVN to RN working Pediatrics, then to House Supervisor, then to Head Nurse 4 East, then to rehab director, then ADON. But this belies the extensive influence she has.
Always, always, always, she did so much more, and the influence she has had not only on nursing but on patient care throughout our healthcare system is overwhelming. She was invaluable to every department—she simply was and continues to be the person other department managers go to, as they could count on her for everything.