NEW YORK NURSE: December 2007
by Joely Johnson
New NYSNA President Linda O’Brien knows what it’s like to climb the nursing career ladder, rung by rung. Now a consultant, she has been professionally dedicated to Brookhaven Memorial Hospital Medical Center in Patchogue, Long Island, since earning her nursing diploma in 1961. She was a staff nurse there for 13 years, as well as a supervisor and nurse manager. In 2002, O’Brien learned about medical records technology to become clinical information systems manager at the medical center. She earned her master’s degree in healthcare management in 2003.
O’Brien’s personal dedication to NYSNA is also exemplary. She is quick to mention that she hasn’t missed a single Convention in more than 20 years. “Every time, I come back personally and professionally stimulated,” she said.
O’Brien was president of the Professional Nurses Association of Suffolk County, NYSNA District 19, for four years and treasurer of the NYSNA Board of Directors from 1995 to 1999. She is an active legislative district coordinator who, in election years, makes sure the RNs in her district get to meet their state candidates at face-to-face gatherings. And she is proud to share that she is the mother of a NYSNA member.
Pressing forward
O’Brien’s past has prepared her for the presidency, a role that she sees playing out within a future full of promise. She has high hopes that many legislative changes currently in the works can be solidified during her term, such as the educational advancement bill requiring bachelor’s degrees for new RNs within 10 years of licensure. “It’s a good bill,” she said. “It’s workable and treats student nurses as the future of nursing. As RNs, we really are required to know – and the public expects us to know – so much.”
The need in the U.S. for universal, single-payer healthcare is another issue that O’Brien is passionate, if cautiously optimistic, about. “I may not see monumental changes during my term, but I’m proud that NYSNA is supporting this important issue as the voice of nursing in New York State.”
Strengthening connections
O’Brien also wants to see the association reach out in more ways to recruit members and to continue to offer support where RNs are in need. “Wouldn’t it be nice if every nurse in New York belonged to their professional organization,” she said. “Think of the things we could do.”
One of O’Brien’s concrete goals is to travel through the state to attend a meeting in each of the 19 districts. “This will spread the word that NYSNA really wants to know and see and be involved.” She is equally interested in hearing about workplace and staffing issues that affect all nurses. “This is what we should be about. Helping and supporting each other so that, ultimately, we can advocate for ourselves and our patients.”