Mary Beth Belcher, of Morris, was named November Fire Starter of the Month at Morris Hospital & Healthcare Centers.
Since joining the Morris Hospital team three years ago, Belcher has made an incredible impact as a Family Birthing Suites obstetrical technician. She has used her passion for education to help enhance quality of care. She has taught physicians and staff to be more conscientious of supply use, resulting in cost savings. And she contributes to the excellent patient experience by making patients her priority.
Belcher says she had initially planned to be a nurse but was so intrigued with her surgical rotation, she changed career paths and became a certified scrub technician. One of her sisters was a labor and delivery nurse, and that also had a big influence on Belcher’s career choice.
“I thought, what a wonderful thing to do every day of your life,” says Belcher, a native of Glen Ellyn, Ill., who saw obstetrics as a specialty area that would allow her to use her surgical skills while helping mother and baby at the same time. She went on to get additional training in high risk obstetrics.
After many years of experience at large medical centers, Belcher’s personal life brought her to Morris at a time when there happened to be an OB tech opening at the hospital. Since then, she has made huge contributions to Morris Hospital with her incredible experience, dedication and passion.
“Mary Beth always goes above and beyond,” says Theresa Whillock, Manager of the Family Birthing Suites at Morris Hospital. “She is a dream employee who is always looking for something beyond her daily duties. She loves to see improvement and has used her expertise in surgery to redesign our cesarean suite. And she is awesome with patient care…just awesome. She loves taking care of patients and wants the best for them.”
Tara Klaus, an obstetrical nurse at Morris Hospital, says, “Ever since Mary Beth started here, it was very apparent that she truly loves our hospital and her role here. She makes sure everyone here feels welcome and that we feel confident in our individual roles in the cesarean suite.”
Belcher says she loves being part of the Family Birthing Suites team at Morris Hospital and that she thoroughly loves what she does as an OB tech.
“I’m inspired by all of my co-workers,” she says. “Our nurses are so in tune to the patients, I love being in the room with them. The nurses inspire me. The doctors inspire me. The housekeepers inspire me. We all work in unison to provide our patients with the very best care.”
“Every patient is an individual and deserves the best,” she adds. “We are fortunate that they chose us, and I am so blessed to be there for the birth of their child.”
In early civilizations, fire starters were the individuals who had the important job of keeping the flame alive.
