Meet Gayle Durkin

Meet Gayle!

I became a Rehab Nurse by accident, you could say.  

For the first 16 years of my nursing career, I learned the basics as a Med/Surg nurse, but once I had 3 children, I stayed home and worked as a 'mom for several years.  I dabbled in substitute teaching, book fairs, and scouts with the kids.  

After some time I realized I wanted to return to nursing and, since I had been out for 8+ years, I took a Nurse Refresher Course at Collin College.  I remember when they taught us about HIPAA... what.. you can't put patient names outside of their door anymore?  I realized a lot had changed, and some things never have.  

After I safely passed my refresher course, I planned on returning to a Med/Surg floor since that was what I was familiar with, but the first unit to call me for an interview was an inpatient rehabilitation unit.  I had floated to a rehab unit years prior but didn't know much about it and thought, why not?  How different can it be from what I am used to?  They offered me a  position and I quickly realized how exhilarating,  physically demanding, and rewarding rehabilitation was!  I was hooked!  15 years later and I still enjoy seeing patients overcome hurdles, and get back to a 'normal', whatever that is for any of us.  While I don't work on the floor anymore, I am doing Case Management/Discharge Planning and I enjoy educating patients on their disease/injury and how to manage it for a better quality of life.