Life can be hectic and hard, but if you set your mind to something, you can do it.”
Katelyn Voudren, RNKatelyn Voudren, RN, charge nurse in Cheshire Medical Center’s Post-Anesthesia Care Unit, was recently named a New Hampshire Healthcare Hero by Southern New Hampshire Area Health Education Center.
This award—started in 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic—honors healthcare workers across the state who repeatedly go above and beyond their job description. Voudren is this year’s Monadnock Region recipient, officially receiving the award July 30.
She was nominated for the award by Pamela Switzer, RN, BS, MSN, nurse manager for Cheshire’s Pre-Operative and Post-Anesthesia Care Units. Switzer said Voudren “portrays a healthcare hero every day.”
One example of this was when one of her post-operation patients—who is the caregiver of her bedbound husband—needed to be admitted.
“Katie was worried about the husband getting the care he needed, so she set up a local [police] welfare visit and arranged a neighbor to help out overnight …,” the nomination form reads. “In the end, Katie not only helped her patient, but her patient’s family.”
Voudren—who has worked at Cheshire for nine years—said her favorite part of the position is helping people during what is often a “scary and anxiety provoking time for them.”
“I really enjoy caring for people … I like waking them up and reassuring them that things are OK,” she said.
Initially starting her medical career as an LNA, Voudren worked full time through nursing school as a single mother to become a registered nurse. That feat, she said, makes this recognition “incredible.”
“I’m honestly speechless,” Voudren said. “It feels amazing for other people to recognize my love and passion for nursing … Life can be hectic and hard, but if you set your mind to something, you can do it.”
For more information on Nursing at Cheshire, click here.