Tuesday, July 11, 2000

Nursing assistant who arrives early, leaves late is honored by residents she treats like family

David Pellerin/Caller-Times

Sharon Hayes (from left), Dotty Bull, David Reyes and Archie Broadway are among the residents who nominated Carmen Garcia (right) for the regional Life Care Centers of America certified nursing assistant of the year award. Garcia works at Alameda Oaks Nursing Center.

Carmen Garcia doesn't have to be at her job at 6 a.m. Nevertheless, she is.
   While most folks are indulging in those last 10 or 15 minutes of sleep, she is busy setting up the dining area at Alameda Oaks Nursing Center, where she has worked for nearly 11 years.
   Garcia, 41, doesn't have to buy doughnuts or cookies, yet she does with her own money, as a pre-breakfast snack for the nursing center's earliest of risers.
   Nor does she have to buy female residents pretty hair combs and pins or style their hair, for that matter. But she relishes these opportunities. Just because residents can no longer live on their own, Garcia explained, "they can still have their hair pinned up like they always liked to wear it at home."
   "A lot of people could do those things," said Garcia's supervisor, Letisia Rendon, a staff development coordinator. "What makes Carmen different is that she genuinely loves these people. Many of the things she does for them, like doing their nails or fixing up their rooms, she does on her off-hours. And none of this is part of her job description."
   But it came as a surprise to Garcia when residents revealed they and their families had launched a letter-writing campaign on her behalf.
   Two weeks ago the effort won her regional certified nursing assistant of the year, making Garcia the company's first local regional award winner for the Life Care Centers of America-owned nursing center.
   They didn't have to go to such lengths to express their gratitude, but they wanted to do it for someone who makes them feel more like a family member than a patient, said Sharon Hays, one of the residents who wrote a nomination letter. "We wanted to for a person who never brags about herself."
   "A lot of people don't realize how hard it is for the elderly and especially our younger residents to have to leave home, come to a nursing center and live with people they've never met before," said Sandy Cantu, the center's admissions and internal marketing director. "Having someone like Carmen who gives them 110 percent makes them feel special and at home, making the transition so much easier for them."
   Garcia delivers patient care to 10 to 12 patients, duties that include bathing, grooming and changing. She also changes bed linens and escorts residents who need help to recreational activities at the center.
   Garcia was 9 years old when she first realized she had been blessed with a compassionate nature. That was when she began caring for her then 13-year-old brother, who became paralyzed after an accident.
   "I want my residents to know that there is someone out there that cares," Garcia said. "And that's the secret to my success. I treat them as if they were my own family."
  
  
 

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