Everyday, a young Jennifer Konowitz watched her mother Nancy McMullen transform into a real-life superhero. Like clockwork, her mother would fall into the routine of readying for work after cooking dinner for the family, slipping into her nurse’s uniform then heading to the hospital.
Nancy McMullen PHOTO BY NICK SAMUEL
“She would have on her white stockings, white dress and white shoes. She wore the cap for many years,” said Konowitz, 48, of Indialantic. “She did everything so that my father could take it easy with us. Nurses do it all. They prepare the home and get everything ready for the children. I believe the finest nurses are nurturers.”
McMullen, 75, of Melbourne Beach, an emergency certified nurse, worked long weekend shifts so she could spend time with her four children.
It paid off.
Her children would grow up with a passion for public service, with one becoming a deputy sheriff, another a fire department captain with a third taking up teaching. Konowitz would follow in her mother’s footsteps to become a nurse.
Konowitz vividly recalled McMullen’s diligence when it came to her calling to take care of countless patients in the medical field.
Now, Konowitz does the same, examining patients, reading charts and using her skill set to make diagnoses and provide treatment. Even more intriguing – and bonding – is that the mother and daughter now both work at the same hospital in Indian River County.
“It is unique working with my mother. Not every family gets to say their bond happens in healing and being compassionate toward others,” Konowitz said. “My mother has emulated this for years. It just comes naturally (to her).”
Family Legacy
Konowitz, APRN-BC, works as a nurse practitioner in the Cardiac Catheterization Lab at Orlando Health Sebastian River Hospital. McMullen, RN-CEN, is assigned to the emergency room.
The mother and daughter said working together is “thrilling.”
“We have a legacy. It’s really a sweet thing,” Konowitz said.
“I had a patient who said ‘how’s your mother?’ Our patients do feel special when they’re handed off from my mother to my team. They feel like they’re part of the family.”
From chaos to control
Staying calm and focused under pressure is vital for nurses…especially in the emergency room. Within a matter of seconds, nurses must make critical clinical decisions and perform time-sensitive procedures for patients who need immediate, medical attention for everything from life-threatening injuries, fevers or deep coughs from respiratory infections.
Even though Konowitz and McMullen work in different departments, they usually see each other when the emergency room nurses assess patients and give them over to nurses in the cardiac lab.
The atmosphere in the emergency room can sometimes be kinetic and chaotic, McMullen points out.
“We get (patients) when they first come in. Usually they’re very anxious and most of the time in a lot of pain,” McMullen said. “The first thing we try to do is get an electrocardiogram and get some health history from them. Then we look at labs. By the time we call the cardiac lab we have a pretty good idea of what’s wrong and how to fix it.”
McMullen said the emergency room nurses are the “explorers,” talking with patients about their symptoms, making observations about injuries and even listening to family dynamics during a health crisis. In the cardiac lab, nurses however, are the “fixers.”
Jennifer Konowitz PHOTO BY NICK SAMUEL
“By the time the (emergency room nurses) get everything under control, they bring the patient to the (cardiac lab),” Konowitz said. “We can have a little more finesse. We can treat the patient specifically, diagnose what’s going on and intervene.”
Loss of breath or congestive heart failure are a few reasons why patients typically go to the emergency room at Orlando Health Sebastian River Hospital. When the patients are taken to the cardiac lab, the nurses use an echocardiogram to evaluate their hearts.
In the case of a heart attack, a cardiologist will perform a cardiac catheterization, a procedure where the doctor uses a thin, flexible tube to check for blockages in the three main coronary arteries that feed the heart.
“Typically one of (the arteries) is closed off and has a clot of blood,” Konowitz said. “The (cardiologist) intervenes immediately. It’s a lifesaving procedure.”
Career Pivot
Konowitz’s career path looked vastly different after obtaining her first bachelor’s degree in advertising and public relations from the University of Central Florida in 2000. The college graduate, fresh from campus studies, once worked as an education coordinator for the global beauty and skincare company Estee Lauder when she was in her early 20s.
She also soared in the skies above as a private flight attendant, catering to high-profile clients including former seven-time NBA All-Star Tracy “T-Mac” McGrady, former U.S. presidents, and other influential people.
Jennifer Konowitz in the Cardiac Catheterization Lab. PHOTO PROVIDED
When Konowitz became pregnant during her sixth year of marriage, her mindset began to shift with the realization that she wanted something more. McMullen said Konowitz called her and said “I want to be a nurse.”
“She was seeing her life in retail, a flight attendant, or an Estee Lauder representative. It didn’t fit in what she wanted to be as a mother,” McMullen said.
“She asked ‘Why didn’t you push me into nursing and let me waste those years?’ I told her she didn’t waste those years. I think her background in doing those other things prepared her for what she was getting into.”
Konowitz already had a bachelor’s degree, but it had nothing to do with medicine. However, her determination and positive outlook didn’t diminish her belief that…one day…she would be saving lives.
“I told her she has no sciences,” McMullen said. “She told me she could do (nursing school) in a year. She did that and went straight from there to being a nurse practitioner.”
Konowitz obtained her chemistry courses and other prerequisites from Brevard Community College, which is now Eastern Florida State College. Then, she completed the accelerated nursing program at the University of Central Florida in Orlando when she was in her late 20s.
“I was amongst other bachelors and masters degree holders of other industries,” Konowitz said. It was difficult. Somehow, I pushed through it and here we are. It was a unique experience.”
Staying modern in medicine
One of the biggest challenges in nursing is keeping up with new strategies and procedures, McMullen said.
“The knowledge base is so broad that if you’re not in a specialty then you just can’t keep up,” McMullen said. “So to have your specialty and to stay current with what’s out there is a challenge, but it’s fun.”
McMullen said nurses in the emergency room might deal with a broad spectrum of health issues reported by patients.
“You might not be a specialist in any of them, but you’ll know how to treat them when they first come in and get them where they need to go,” McMullen said.
‘Listen with your heart’
Showing empathy toward patients, anticipating their needs and not becoming desensitized is vital for nurses. In the halls of the hospital, some patients learn of dramatic life changes, such as a man discovering he has cancer.
“(Nurses) should acutely listen because some of (the patients’) cues are nonverbal. You have to really listen with your heart,” Konowitz said. “The very best nurses are inquisitive. They’re always taking the next class and always reading the current literature. My mother is 74 and is still taking classes. That’s how you stay modern in medicine.”
Nancy McMullen (center) and Jennifer Konowitz (right) compete in a 5K race. PHOTO PROVIDED
McMullen said it’s important for nurses to “put themselves in the patients’ shoes.” Treating the sick is an everyday task for nurses, but going to the emergency room is a sometimes traumatic event for the patients.
“I pretend like I’m (the patient’s) mother,” McMullen said.
Konowitz said it’s important for nurses – who find themselves walking the halls of the hospital, moving from room to room while constantly being on their feet – to stay in good physical shape. Konowitz and McMullen previously competed in 5K races together.
“If I get stressed out about something, instead of grabbing the Häagen-Dazs, I get on the Peloton or the elliptical,” Konowitz said. “Any good provider who’s teaching patients about health and well-being should also model that. We try to live well physically.”
Final thoughts
For Konowitz, the moments that make nursing so special are when she sees patients leaving the hospital walking and even jovial after receiving care for a critical illness. Sometimes the patients return and bring the nurses brownies and crotchet animals.
“It’s a beautiful thing when we see them coming back,” Konowitz said. “It’s full circle. It’s gratifying.”
Nancy McMullen (left) and Jennifer Konowitz (right). PHOTO BY NICK SAMUEL
Konowitz’s advice to new nurses is to never think they are alone. She added that nurses can have a work buddy or mentor they can ask for advice in a profession where mental exhaustion or physical burnout are real challenges.
“Oftentimes we think we have to figure it out ourselves. I call the pharmacy on a daily basis if I have a question. If I want to run something by the intensivist in the ICU, I’ll call that physician,” Konowitz said. “The hospital is so amazing. We have an amazing pool of people in this little tiny cottage hospital who are so talented, kind and educated.”
McMullen has worked as a nurse for 54 years, including more than 25 years at Orlando Health. Konowitz has worked at the 145-bed Orlando Health Sebastian River Hospital since 2012.
Konowitz thinks back to when she first made the decision to go back to school for nursing. Konowitz, now a mother of three children, said she has no regrets. Now, it’s her turn to nurture the children before she prepares to head out for her nursing shift.
“I’m grateful my mother was a nurse. I think I always had it in the back of my mind that I could do that if I wanted to,” Konowitz said. “I’m so grateful I did.”
