All in the Family
A family tree is not all that connects Mary, Gerard and Michael Miller. The
Millers represent three generations, each doing their part to strengthen the proud
Nursing history at BWH.
Mary, the eldest Miller, began the legacy after her interest in nursing was
sparked by an advertisement from Carney Hospital. “I felt I could help more
people by becoming a nurse, rather than by pursuing the other limited career options
for women at that time,” she said.
After graduating from Carney in 1947, Mary started her career working private
part-time duty shifts at the Peter Bent Brigham Hospital (PBBH) so she could spend
more time raising her ten children. During her time at PBBH, she was part of a
pivotal medical milestone, as she cared for the first successful kidney transplant
patients in 1954 and worked with Joseph Murray, MD. “I periodically took
care of the early transplant patients and loved my critical role at the hospital,”
she said.
Her son Jerry broke into the nursing field during the early 1980s. A college
graduate with an education degree, Jerry recalled the struggle to find a job in
education upon graduation. “I went off to other parts of the country and
found myself drawn to the medical profession as I began working as an orderly
at Colorado’s Boulder Community Hospital,” he said. Probably influenced
by his mother’s accounts of the positive impact she made as a nurse, Jerry
came back to Massachusetts and started taking nursing classes at the Framingham
Union School of Nursing and graduated in 1981. He has been at BWH since 1998.
“So much has developed since my mother was a nurse in the World War II
era and it is just wonderful to hear the stories of the past orally and not by
reading a book,” said Jerry.
Michael Miller, Jerry’s nephew and Mary’s grandson, is just starting
out in his nursing career. A graduate of the University of Virginia, Michael moved
to the Boston area in 2004—deciding to come to BWH because of all the wonderful
things his uncle, Jerry, and grandmother, Mary had described. “I knew BWH
would be an optimal setting in which to begin my career because of its commitment
to specialized patient care, state-of-the-art research and cutting edge technology,
as well as the hospital’s impressive commitment to its nurses,” Michael
said.
Enrolling in the BWH New Nurse Orientation Program this summer, Michael said
the program is one of the best in the city for properly training newly licensed
nurses. “The program here is longer and more comprehensive compared to other
programs, and my pairing with a mentor has provided me with the proper exposure
to nursing practice standards at BWH,” he said.
Stories shared among all three Millers at family get-togethers, provides each
with a greater context for BWH’s history and an appreciation for its future.
“To think of how long ago my mom started here and how BWH has evolved since
then is remarkable,” Jerry said.
“I am so proud that my grandson Michael became a nurse—he is now
our legacy,” added Mary.