Joyce Buckley
Coming Full Cirlce
Over the last 38 years, I’ve been an employee, a patient and a volunteer at Holy Cross Hospital. My experiences have given me great pride in the hospital and its accomplishments. And now my family is carrying on that tradition.
My career at Holy Cross Hospital started on August 11, 1975, when I was still in nursing school at Montgomery College. I had joined a friend who worked at the hospital for lunch that day, and she introduced me to the Emergency Room (ER) manager. Well, I was interested in working part-time and mentioned it to the manager who hired me on the spot!
Joyce Buckley, RN , 1975 to present
(Joyce, shown far left, with her family)
For two years, I worked in the ER as a nursing aide; when I graduated, I was offered a position as a primary/medical care nurse on the 6th floor. But I missed the excitement of the ER, so after a couple of years, I returned.
A little while later, I decided I wanted to work in a happier environment and moved over to Labor and Delivery (L&D) where I soon discovered that the experience—with the adrenalin rushes and need to act quickly—was more similar to the ER than I expected! But I just loved dealing with the mother/baby/father unit.
I stayed in L&D for 25 years, until I was nearly 50. At that stage in my life, I wanted to transition to something a little less stressful, so I took a position in Medical Adult Day Center and Employee Health, where I have been for the last eight years.
A couple of years ago, when Holy Cross Hospital needed to show public support for a new hospital, I volunteered and helped canvass the Olney and Gaithersburg communities for signatures. Now that Holy Cross Germantown Hospital is becoming a reality, I’m grateful that everyone’s hard work paid off and am proud I contributed to the hospital’s future.
Beyond my professional association with Holy Cross Hospital, all three of my children were born here and, one way or another, are following in my footsteps. Brian joined the hospital shortly after receiving his bachelor’s degree in Supply Chain Management. Megan, who’s still in college and studying ultrasound, works as a Health Unit Coordinator, and hopes to make a long-term career here after graduation.