The Heart of Regina Health Center: Investing in RHC’s Frontline Health Care Professionals
In the new issue of The Heart of Regina Health Center newsletter, Executive Director Mark Yantek writes about remaining hopeful during trying times. There are also stories about how spiritual enrichment has continued in new ways during the pandemic, a preview of the 170th anniversary of the Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine, a Holy-In-One recap and more. The cover story highlights how one donor has been helping frontline health care professionals advance their skills through continuing education for 20 years.
Read the full newsletter here.
The Heart of Regina Health Center: Investing in RHC’s Frontline Health Care Professionals
The Ann T. Kadzielski Memorial Fund has been helping Regina Health Center’s frontline health care professionals advance their skills and careers through continuing education for 20 years. Mark Kadzielski and his sister Lucia (who passed away in 2019) established the fund after their mother Ann passed away in 2000. Ann was a resident at Regina Health Center (RHC). Mark said he and his sister really appreciated the quality and compassion of the staff and how they took care of his mother.
“Our intention has always been to have a lasting fund in the memory of our mother that invests in quality staff, which Regina has, and directing the funds for education and skill development,” said Mark.
Care Coordinator Natalie Truelson, LPN, is one of those frontline professionals who is benefitting from the generosity of the Ann T. Kadzielski Memorial Fund. Natalie has worked at Regina Health Center since 2012. She started as a float nurse before being promoted to care coordinator and weekend supervisor.
Natalie’s mother was a nurse, which inspired her to become a licensed practical nurse (LPN) after her two children went to elementary school. She said heartfelt conversations with her mother guided her dream to first receive her LPN and then work on becoming a registered nurse (RN) before finally earning her Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN). The memorial fund is helping make that dream become a reality.
Natalie is now enrolled in the University of Akron LPN to BSN program and expects to earn her bachelor’s degree in 2023. The fund covers the cost of tuition, books and medical supplies, as well as contributing to commuting expenses due to living off campus.
“I am very appreciative to Mr. Kadzielski and Regina Health Center for the nursing education financial support. I hope to stay here for the duration of my nursing career,” said Natalie. “The spirituality of the residents and staff provide a peaceful, relaxing and welcoming work environment. It is truly a family feeling.”
Attracting and retaining talented nurses and other caregivers has become more challenging in light of the pandemic. Being able to offer opportunities for advancing education is an important recruitment and retention tool.
“The Ann T. Kadzielski Memorial Fund is helping us invest in our employees by helping them expand their skills through continuing education,” said Mark Yantek, executive director, Regina Health Center. “Not only does providing education money to frontline health professionals expand their skills, it’s one more incentive for our staff to stay here because they know we’re willing to invest in helping them grow.”
Although he lives in California, Mark continues to make donations to the fund he and his sister started in 2000 to keep expanding its impact on RHC’s frontline workers. Mark grew up on Cleveland’s West Side and graduated from St. Ignatius High School and then John Carroll University. He attended Penn Law School and earned his law degree in 1976. Preferring warmer climates, he headed to California, passed the bar exam and joined a health care law firm at a time when that legal specialty was in its infancy. He is now a partner with BakerHostetler in Los Angeles, where he provides regulatory and operational guidance and representation to hospitals, medical staffs, managed care enterprises, and institutional and individual health care providers throughout the United States.
“Sharing the career success of Natalie at this time is a perfect way to express our gratitude and support of the mission and the work Regina Health Center does. It is a wonderful facility,” said Mark Kadzielski.