“At the Ottawa Heart Institute we get to say things like, ‘We are the experts in cardiology, our doctors have done this hundreds of times, and you are in the right place.’”
Celebrating a 28-year nursing career at the OHI, Beroly Mathew says that there is something very special about the Heart Institute, making it a wonderful place to work. “My co-workers motivate and inspire me. Every single day I see them work above and beyond to provide the best possible care for their patients. We work as a team including physicians, social workers, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, housekeeping and more. I am so proud to be part of an organization that prioritizes compassion, professionalism, and patient-centred care. Everybody here is the best, the best of everything.”
When she was just 25 years old, Beroly left her home of Kerala, a southern province of India, with her husband, a bachelor’s degree in nursing and dreams of a life in Ottawa. “I arrived in Canada from India in 1995 and was excited to see snow for the first time.”
After obtaining a Critical Care diploma, and working at the bedside for many years, Beroly saw an opening for a Care Facilitator in 2018, applied, and got the position. “My job is to manage the unit flow on H5 Cardiology. We have 32 beds and care for patients admitted for medical heart disease, heart attack, diagnostic procedures or a heart transplant. Our average patient age is between 40 to 80 but we have cared for younger people too. And, thanks to advances in cardiac care, we now see patients in their nineties as well.”
H5 is staffed by six nurses at night and nine nurses, plus Beroly, during the day. “My shift starts at 7:15 a.m. but I usually arrive right after seven to check in with the night staff and see whether anything needs to be sorted out. I provide support for the nurses and am also a resource person for the unit. Each morning I’ll have a list ready for my manager, with notes on the needs of incoming patients, potential discharges, staffing issues, isolation requirements and transfers. I am there to make sure that everything moves forward and that things don’t get stuck somewhere along the way. Every day is different and I really like that.
According to Beroly, work satisfaction comes from both big moments and small exchanges. “Sometimes satisfaction comes from medical things that our team does to make a huge difference. And then sometimes it’s about having the chance to comfort someone. Like a family member saying, ‘My God, I was so worried about mom’s surgery until you explained it to me.’ Patients and their families often arrive here scared. Helping them to understand what to anticipate, possible complications, and what the recovery will look like is very gratifying.”
Decades of patient care at the Institute have also provided Beroly with the opportunity to witness the impact of life-saving advancements. “It is amazing to see how much the Institute’s technology and methods have evolved since I started. Procedures like the TAVI, a minimally invasive procedure to replace a diseased aortic valve, have been introduced along with advances in angiogram techniques, surgery, research and prevention. I was recently talking to my friends and family about the One Million Canadian Hearts initiative, and they were quite excited.”
Asked what being a nurse means to her, Beroly refers to the 5 Cs of Nursing Care – Compassion, Clinical Skills, Communication, Collaboration with the team, and Curiousity. “Curiousity to learn new things and improve your clinical self. To me, nursing has always been more than a profession. It is an honour and a privilege to be present in somebody’s life during their most vulnerable moments. To be their advocate and hold their hand.”
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