The ability to help people at the most vulnerable points of their lives while supporting patients and their families through critical illness is what drives Nurse Manager Katie Wild.
Having recently been appointed as the Nurse Manager of the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the new Victorian Heart Hospital (VHH), Katie couldn’t be more excited to utilise the new state-of-the-art space to help people who are critically unwell recover and go home to their families.
“We’ll be looking after elective presentations and emergency presentations in the ICU, including cardiac surgeries such as coronary artery bypasses, valve replacements, as well as acute coronary syndromes and heart failures,” she said.
“It will also house our newly formed extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) service, which is almost like a portable bypass machine to help support people with heart or severe respiratory failure.
“It’s a really exciting opportunity to improve health outcomes for patients and make an environment that fosters recovery and helps reduce length of stay so these patients can return to their lives sooner.”
Having worked in the ICU at Monash Medical Centre since she was a graduate nurse in 2015, Katie said this experience would greatly benefit her when transitioning to the Victorian Heart Hospital.
“I’ve learnt so much from the team we’ve had here, and it’s something I want to instil at the VHH ICU– the ability to grow a responsive and exciting team in a new environment,” she said.
“It really gives us an opportunity to innovate and change the way we do things to positively impact patients’ lives and also people’s enjoyment at work.”
Katie said she was excited to help establish the same positive, engaging culture at the VHH ICU.
“I’m passionate about working with people who want to make a difference and are engaged in what they do and we are going to carry this over to the VHH to create a positive and engaging workplace culture,” she said.
For any nurses wondering if they should make the jump to a new role at the VHH, Katie said she couldn’t encourage it more.
“How many times do you get an opportunity to work in a purpose-built, brand-new unit and develop a nation-first service? We’re the first to have a service such as this, and it’s an exciting opportunity that doesn’t come around every day”.
To learn more about career opportunities at the Victorian Heart Hospital, visit our Careers page.