Chris Young, chief nursing officer, presented Tina Bair, manager of Infection Prevention and Control, with Akron Children’s 2025 Magnet Nurse of the Year award.
After 37 years, Tina Bair is closing the chapter on a remarkable career at Akron Children’s. Tina’s path to nursing was sparked by childhood inspiration and nurtured by career opportunities. And she’s closing it out with one of nursing’s highest honors, being named Akron Children’s 2025 Magnet Nurse of the Year.
“My interest in nursing came from a combination of things; a love of science and how things worked, a family friend who was a physician and encouraged me to pursue a career in nursing, and watching grandparents become ill and wanting to learn how to help people better take care of themselves,” she said.
This passion for helping others eventually led her to Akron Children’s.
“I was working at an adult facility in the Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU) and an infant was admitted to that unit. I was the nurse assigned to care for the patient,” she recalled. “The transport team from Akron Children’s NICU (the only one at the time) came to take the patient for more intensive treatment.”
Tina said she had the privilege of working with many great people throughout her tenure at Akron Children’s and that is what she will miss most.
Tina said taking care of that infant is what drew her to apply to the Akron Children’s NICU to use her critical care nursing skills.
“Prior to that, I had no idea infants needed that kind of complex care,” she said.
Over her long tenure, Tina held many roles. She was a NICU staff nurse, assistant nurse manager and education coordinator before transitioning to an infection control prevention nurse in 2006.
“When I took the position in Infection Control, it was a time when regulatory guidelines and surveillance for infectious diseases was exploding in scope,” she said. “The infection control program that was in place needed to be updated and expanded for the organization to be compliant with the new standards.”
Not only did Tina have to learn her new role, she also had to figure out how to bring the program up to date at the same time. Fast forward to today, and her accomplishments are a testament to her vision.
Tina with her family during Christmas 2024.
“Infection Control is its own department, many infection preventionists have been trained in infection control principles and certified, multiple surveillance systems for hospital-acquired infections and reportable infectious diseases are in place, and there is a dedicated data analyst to help with reporting requirements,” she said.
The impact of her work is best understood through her nominator’s words for the Magnet Nurse of the Year Award. The nominator praised her for her exemplary professional practice, noting that, “Tina has promoted trust in the communities we serve by preventing and controlling both infectious and hospital-acquired patient infections. She has improved the health of our patients through her excellence in advancing infection control in patient care, developing education for staff, researching new infection prevention strategies, providing advocacy and leadership during a global pandemic and maintaining community partnerships with public health departments and industry professionals.”
Beyond the many changes she oversaw, Tina found her greatest satisfaction in the daily work.
Tina has no set plans for retirement, but looks forward to spending more time with her children and grandchildren.
“Knowing that when I came to work each day and did my job, it made the hospital safer for patients, families, staff and visitors,” she said. “People can’t always see the work that infection control does behind the scenes, but if it was not being done, they would see the result of that. Because infection control touches every aspect in a hospital and in ways people can’t imagine are important.”
Her happiest moments on the job were centered around the relationships she built.
“I’ve had the privilege of working with good people, making lasting friendships and doing what I enjoyed every day,” she said. “That is what I will miss most.”
So, it only seems fitting that a career so dedicated to excellence would be capped off by one of nursing’s highest honors. The Magnet Nurse of the Year Award recognizes outstanding clinical nurses in Magnet designated organizations by acknowledging their contributions exemplifying excellence in leadership, innovation and professional risk-taking.
“Tina has demonstrated autonomy and served as a resource for the entire organization in her initiatives to respond to emerging pathogens,” said her nominator. “Beginning in 2020, she provided guidance for hospital leadership and staff during the COVID-19 pandemic. In an uncertain and challenging time, she was available around the clock and unrelenting in her efforts to protect our patients, staff and community.”
When asked about winning the award, Tina expressed her gratitude.
‘Honestly, I’m still trying to process this great honor! It means a lot to me, and I’m so honored to have been nominated and won,” said Tina. “It’s the highlight of my nursing career.”
Tina is looking forward to what’s next in her retirement. “I’m leaving my plans for the next chapter open. I want to see what comes,” she said. “I’m not a person who can sit still easily. I want to take some time with my family and grandchildren.”
