story and photo by James Coburn, Staff Writer
Michael Boensch loves the fact that his nursing career is with a Christian organization where everybody lifts each other up as an employee. They also have a common philosophy toward patient care. He has the pleasure of watching patients improve in his career as a registered nurse at All Faith Home Care, located in Edmond.
“You get to develop quite a professional relationship with these patients,” Boensch said. “They come to depend on you and that’s quite a feeling.”
Boensch had been an LPN since 2007 when he graduated from Southern Nazarene University in 2013 with his Master of Business Administration degree in Health Care. In April he became a registered nurse after earning a degree at Rose State College in December. He plans on earning a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree to broaden his horizons.
“In health care I’ve been with several different agencies, and they all had different philosophies on how they take care of their patients and the motivations behind taking care of the patients,” he said.
Some of the health care businesses were patient centered, but others were based more on monetary gain, he said. Boensch could tell the difference between the patients with the quality of care they received, he said.
“From my perspective, those that had more of a servant believer type mentality, actually did quite better with the patients and their patient satisfaction,” he continued.
Some of his patients are recovering from surgeries and need therapeutic help. Some long-term care patients live with more serious conditions that need to be monitored and addressed. The goal is to help prevent patients from being hospitalized and stay in the comfort of home. (story continues below)
“It’s been quite a challenge in the last couple of years with what has gone on with COVID. People with chronic conditions didn’t fare as well,” he said. “Fortunately, with our patients, we had some that came down with the COVID virus, but for the most part they’ve recovered and have done quite well. We try to get the patients back to the best function for themselves, just their personal best.”
The nursing staff is mentally equipped with the knowledge they need when going to patients’ homes. As accomplished nurses, they are educated about handling situations that pop up at the spur of the moment.
“If they don’t, they always call,” he said.
The LPNs know to call a registered nurse to be dispatched when needed to perform a task designated for an RN. He loves the fact that the nursing staff pays close attention to listening to their patients.
“I admire that the nurses we have on staff are very loyal, dedicated to the company. And the nurse aides (Trena Anderson and Ky’shawndra Whiteside) are two amazing women. I love the fact that you’re not going to find a single patient that we have that would speak ill of the two. It’s quite refreshing to have such a great staff. We all work together as a team,” he said.
Boensch’s character began leaning toward the nursing profession when he was a child. Nursing may have been an abstraction in his mind, but he had a caring persona to help people. He knew that laughter could improve the quality of life. Boensch never was the type of person who wanted to be the center of attention. He quietly supported people in the background. As he grew older, he ventured into phlebotomy and realized how the medical field helps people.
“I just kind of fell in love with the nursing profession even though I didn’t go directly into that. I sidetracked and veered off from there,” he said.
Boensch entered emergency medical services as a technician. He liked the fast-paced nature of providing care while riding in ambulances. It was only natural for him to become a nurse. His brother was already an LPN and helped guide him in that direction.
“It’s been quite a fulfilling journey,” he said. “I thoroughly enjoy this, and I can’t see myself doing anything else.”
Nurses have opportunities to comfort others by holding hands. Some nurses pray for their patients.
As a nurse, Boensch has prepared meals, provided personal care, and a variety of things including walking dogs because the patients are unable to do that.
“Our job is kind of a comfort giver along with a healer,” he said. “So, we’re just there to ensure we improve the quality of life for our patients in any way that we can. It’s quite a rewarding field. I just love it.”
For more information about ALLFAITH Home Care visit: http://www.allfaithhc.com/ or call 405-340-5100.
