Mother, daughter care for patients in different ways, with similar heart

Mother, daughter care for patients in different ways, with similar heart

For Lisa Heller and Kristen Schrandt, working together as nurses at Emplify Health by Gundersen West Union Hospital was never on their radar. Lisa is a life-long nurse in West Union who likes to take the time to get to know her patients and form relationships. Kristen, on the other hand, left home to pursue her career - one she finds most fulfilling in the fast pace of the emergency room.

Oh, and Kristen didn't think she would want to work with her mother.

But as fate would have it, for two-and-a-half years now, this mother/daughter duo has cared for patients - sometimes side by side - in their hometown of West Union. And while what they like most about their work differs, they're drawn together by a common bond of caring for people during their most fragile times.

For Lisa, Emplify Health by Gundersen West Union Hospital was always where she was meant to be - and the place she's spent the past 45 years. She's a charge nurse, meaning she gets a taste of working in every department.

"I get to go tinker around with all kinds of stuff," Lisa says, "and I like that."

Kristen mostly sticks to what she loves - the fast and often unpredictable life in the emergency room, with occasional stints in medical/surgical. She also works some hours for WinnMed in Decorah.

"I'm expanding a little bit back to med/surg world, but I still prefer the ER," Kristen says. "I like to fix and get 'em going. Fast-paced. I don't like a schedule."

Similar starts

Lisa was an athlete growing up, and she took an interest in health. That led her to wanting to pursue a career in either physical therapy or nursing - finding later that nursing provided more of what she was looking to do.

"I did not know that she had that background wanting physical therapy," Kristen said to her surprise upon hearing that story, "but that's exactly how I started. Right out of high school, I wanted to be a physical therapist assistant."

However, the wait to get into a program was going to be two years, so Kristen scrapped that idea and moved home to attend Northeast Iowa Community College for nursing.

"I couldn't sit at a desk and do a desk job," Kristen said. "I don't know what else I would do."

Lisa has another daughter, Danielle, who's a nurse who also began her career in West Union before leaving to become a travel nurse and eventually settling into a surgical position in Iowa City. Her two sons are in computer science and graphic design.

"The girls all became nurses, and I'm surprised, because we never had holidays together," Lisa says. "But it makes me proud that they wanted to do that. They've both very successful and both good nurses. That's all I hear, is people coming back to me and telling me how good they are, so that makes me feel good."

An unlikely duo

As much as Lisa and Kristen love their professions, neither thought they'd ever work together. Lisa wasn't convinced Kristen would choose nursing, and even when she did, she thought she'd like to keep some separation - which she did for about six years before finally deciding to come home. That convenience and work-life balance is what Kristen was looking for after having her second child, and that's what Emplify Health by Gundersen offered.

But now that they are working together, they've found that that aspect of their relationship works well. Because of the roaming nature of Lisa's job, she sometimes finds herself on shift next to Kristen. Both say they understand each other and collaborate well.

"When we're at work, it's a whole different story," Lisa says. "We don't even have to talk. I know what she's going to do, she knows what I'm going to do. We trust each other."

"We know the capabilities and have confidence in each other," Kristen adds.

At first, Kristen was worried that working with her mom would draw inevitable comparisons between the two, but she's found that not to be the case.

"She knows I've been here forever and a day, so everybody calls me mom," Lisa says.

Kristen says it's nice to have her mother - someone who knows her best - working alongside her, admitting she'll occasionally slip up and call her mom on the floor - somewhat to the confusion of patients.

"They also like that she's my daughter because I've taken care of them before," Lisa says. "So, they like her taking care of them as well, which is kind of neat for me."

In the end, working together works for them. And at the end of the day, they'll always be family.

"I'm still going to be the mom," Lisa says.

"And I'm always going to be the stubborn daughter," Kristen adds with a laugh.