Sheboygan – Hospital Sisters Health System (HSHS) hospitals in Eastern Wisconsin are pleased to announce Desarae Rohde, an emergency department nurse at HSHS St. Nicholas Hospital as *2020 Nurse of the Year.
HSHS hospitals in Eastern Wisconsin include: HSHS St. Vincent Hospital and HSHS St. Mary’s Hospital Medical Center in Green Bay; HSHS St. Nicholas Hospital in Sheboygan; and HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital in Oconto Falls. Each year, one nurse is chosen as Nurse of the Year. Nurses nominate a colleague from their unit, and those nominations are then reviewed by nursing leadership and the hospitals’ Professional Nurse Practice Council.
“Desarae is a role model in our department who demonstrates passion, quality and excellence in nursing by continually striving to learn and become a leader,” said Cassandra Limberg, Nursing Manager, HSHS St. Nicholas Hospital Emergency Department. “Not only is she a great nurse to work with, but she truly takes pride in being a nurse here.”
Desarae, a graduate of Sheboygan Falls High School, started at HSHS St. Nicholas Hospital in 2011 as a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) in the surgical department. She graduated from Lakeshore Technical College as a Registered Nurse (RN) in 2017 and recently completed her Bachelor of Science in nursing (BSN) degree at Lakeland University. While the COVID-19 pandemic has presented many difficulties, it has allowed Desarae to do what she loves most as a nurse, which is to help people through difficult times.
“To slow the spread of COVID-19, we could not allow patients to have family members with them inside the emergency department for a period of time, which meant we all had to be more than just our patients’ medical care providers, but their family members too,” said Desarae. “This time has really reinforced for me, and many others, how important it is to be present and communicate with your patients.”
Desarae is also celebrated for becoming one of the first to offer to assist with administering COVID-19 vaccinations to the community at the Prevea Community COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic at UW-Green Bay, Sheboygan Campus. Her caring for the community extends to her colleagues as well, as this past year she also organized a department-wide weight loss challenge in which her emergency department colleagues lost more than 150 lbs. And, during the holiday season, she led a toy drive at the hospital for children in need.
“Desarae is energetic and motivational when it comes to connecting the HSHS mission to the Sheboygan community,” said Loren Lortscher, Director of Clinical Services at HSHS St. Nicholas Hospital. “She also demonstrates a high level of technical skill and provides extreme care and compassion when she is with patients and their family members.”
Desarae lives in Sheboygan Falls with her husband, Nathan and their three children.
*The HSHS Eastern Wisconsin Nurse of the Year for the previous year is typically announced in spring/summer of the current year.
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About HSHS St. Vincent Hospital and HSHS St. Mary’s Hospital Medical Center
HSHS St. Vincent Hospital and HSHS St. Mary’s Hospital Medical Center have been delivering quality health care to Green Bay and its surrounding communities since 1888. With HSHS St. Vincent being the largest tertiary care hospital and HSHS St. Mary’s location on Green Bay’s west side, patients from Northeastern Wisconsin and Upper Michigan benefit from a comprehensive range of services that include cancer care, women’s services, emergency and trauma care, preventive care across the lifespan, digestive health, orthopedic, cardiac care, neurosciences, rehabilitation and pediatrics. Affiliates of Hospital Sisters Health System, the hospitals primary purpose is to continue Christ’s healing love through the delivery of competent and compassionate health care in an environment sensitive to the needs of all people. Both hospitals are accredited by the Joint Commission of Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations.
About HSHS St. Nicholas Hospital
HSHS St. Nicholas Hospital has been delivering high quality health care to Sheboygan and its surrounding communities since 1890. HSHS St. Nicholas Hospital provides a comprehensive range of services that include cancer care, women’s services, 24-hour emergency care, digestive health, orthopedics, cardiac, home health and hospice care. The hospital’s primary purpose is to continue Christ’s healing love through the delivery of high quality and compassionate health care in an environment sensitive to the needs of all people. HSHS St. Nicholas Hospital is accredited by the Joint Commission of Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. An affiliate of Hospital Sisters Health System, we draw on the history of St. Francis of Assisi as we move to continue serving the health care needs of our area in Christ’s healing ministry, caring for all people. To learn more, visit www.stnicholashospital.org.
About HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital
HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital serves Oconto Falls and the surrounding communities as a federally-designated critical access hospital with a 24-hour emergency department, urgent care, general, vascular and orthopedic surgical services, inpatient and outpatient surgical and diagnostic services, rehabilitation, oncology outpatient clinic and women’s care. HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital, in affiliation with Prevea Health, has six regional health center locations in Gillett, Lena, Mountain, Oconto, Oconto Falls and Suring. HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital Pharmacies are located in Gillett and Oconto Falls. Founded in 1921 as Community Memorial Hospital, in 2014, HSHS St. Clare Memorial Hospital became the fourteenth hospital in Hospital Sisters Health System. As an affiliate of Hospital Sisters Health System, we draw on the history of St. Francis of Assisi as we move to continue serving the health care needs of our area in Christ’s healing ministry, caring for all people. For more information about St. Clare, visit www.stclarememorial.org.
About Hospital Sisters Health System
Hospital Sisters Health System’s (HSHS) mission is to reveal and embody Christ’s healing love for all people through our high quality, Franciscan health care ministry. HSHS provides state-of-the-art health care to our patients and is dedicated to serving all people, especially the most vulnerable, at each of our 15 Local Systems and physician practices in Illinois (Breese, Decatur, Effingham, Greenville, Highland, Litchfield, O’Fallon, Shelbyville and Springfield) and Wisconsin (Chippewa Falls, Eau Claire, Oconto Falls, Sheboygan, and two in Green Bay). HSHS is sponsored by Hospital Sisters Ministries. For more information about HSHS, visit www.hshs.org. For more information about Hospital Sisters of St. Francis, visit www.hospitalsisters.org.