Celebrating Our People – Meet Phyllis

A Constant Helper

Ever since she was fresh out of college with a nursing degree, Saint Joseph Mount Sterling orthopedic nurse navigator Phyllis Martin can’t imagine being anything, or anywhere, else.

“Eighteen years ago, I started here right out of school when it was still Mary Chiles Hospital,” Phyllis said. “Over the years, resources and technology have changed, but the one consistency is the sense of family.

“There are some days we spend more time with [co-workers] than we do our own families. You get a real sense of family; you know each other and each other’s families. It’s the same with our patients. You get to where you know their names, their pets’ names, their families. It’s our community hospital. I take pride and a sense of ownership in that.”

Phyllis started in med-surg and continued in that nursing specialty for 10 years, then switched to orthopedics in 2012. Her peers and patients recently recognized her service with the Daisy Award – her first since she began her career.

“It’s always nice to be recognized,” Phyllis said. “Especially in the position I’m in, I’m not a bedside nurse. When I’m out on the floor, I help with whatever needs to be done. I don’t stick with just orthopedic stuff; I feel I’m a role player, a team player. I find my role and go with it. I feel like my role in life is to be a helper.”

Being a nurse wasn’t Phyllis’ plan in college. When she was a student at Morehead State University, Phyllis said she started out as a history major.

“It was just one day I wasn’t happy in the major I chose,” Phyllis said. “So I looked at everything, and, to be honest, I thought nursing was a good field to go into because of job security. Now I can’t imagine being anything else.”

In her free time, Phyllis is raising her two boys, ages 13 and 6, with her husband. Her family is active in their church. Since novel coronavirus changed the way Phyllis works and lives, she’s spending more time slowing down.

“Coronavirus showed me we’re all in a rush, and we should just appreciate what we have,” Phyllis said.