Gina Schiavone, pictured with her husband, Brennan, absolutely adores her job as Akron Children’s newest neonatal nurse practitioner.
You know the saying, “Choose a profession you love and you’ll never work another day in your life.”? That’s how Gina Schiavone defines success, and she’s happy to report she’s achieved it here.
Akron Children’s newest neonatal nurse practitioner absolutely adores her job, assessing, managing and evaluating high-risk babies who need special care due to low birth weight, heart abnormalities, infection or other prematurity complications.
She fell in love with neonatology because of the resiliency shown by these critically ill patients. To her, there’s nothing more rewarding than watching them grow and meet milestones, all the while overcoming incredible hurdles.
So each time she gets to discharge and send home a baby for the first time after staying weeks, if not months, at the hospital, Gina is reminded her job is not work at all, but instead her true passion.
Why did you choose to come to Akron Children’s Hospital?
I started as a volunteer in high school and I fell in love with the culture Akron Children’s Hospital exhibits. No matter what position I held within the hospital (volunteer, student, NNP), everyone was welcoming and encouraged me in my role. That left a lasting impression on me and I knew that was the type of culture I wanted to be a part of.
Describe your role at Akron Children’s and what you hope to accomplish?
My current role at Akron Children’s is a neonatal nurse practitioner. I attend high-risk deliveries, including those who are premature or have some other underlying disease that would need further management upon delivery.
Within the unit, I assess, manage and evaluate infants. I am very passionate about the Golden Hour (first hour of life) protocol in extremely low birth weight infants. I hope to implement best practices related to Golden Hour and improve long-term outcomes.
Gina’s family includes her husband, Brennan, and their rescue dog, Sandy.
What is your area of expertise and why did you choose it?
My area of expertise is neonatology. I fell in love with neonatology because of the resiliency shown by critically ill infants. These infants overcome many obstacles during their hospital stay.
What’s the best part of your day?
The best part of my day is when we get to discharge and send home one of our patients. It is not uncommon for our infants to be admitted for weeks or even months. Watching these infants grow and overcome incredible hurdles is extremely rewarding. Also, it’s very exciting to watch these families meet milestones with their infants during their stay.
What excites you most about medicine?
Medicine fascinates me due to the ever-changing advancements. I love learning about the different advancements and seeking better outcomes in our patient population. Medicine is always evolving, and the greatest miracles can happen with these new improvements.
What does success mean to you?
Success to me is all about being happy and enjoying waking up and coming to work in the morning. I was always told to do what you love in life and it would never feel like work.
Who makes up your family, including pets and their names?
My family includes my husband, Brennan, who I just married this past September. We just purchased our first home together. We also rescued a dog named Sandy. Sandy loves going for walks, playing with her toys and getting her belly rubbed. We are so happy to have her as part of our family.
What’s one thing on your bucket list?
I have always had a love for travel. One item on my bucket list is to see all 50 states. I am currently at 21 states. Hopefully once this pandemic subsides, I can travel again and knock some more states off my list.
You must be logged in to post a comment.