RN has good reason for loyalty
by James Coburn, staff writer
Nepali born Dhundi Retimi, RN, has been a mainstay at Inspire Specialty Hospital in Midwest City. He has experienced a variety of cultures and health conditions during his tenure. In 2013 he earned his Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree at Langston University. He has been with Inspire Specialty Hospital since 2015.
“I get to see every type of person here — get to know them — get to treat them. So, I feel like this is the right position,” Retimi said. “I love this place in the sense it gives me opportunity to grow.”
Additionally, he said the hospital’s environment of coworkers is highly impressive. The nursing staff and management is very team oriented. Management is always keen to listen to his opinions, providing a sense of shared governance.
“They provide what I need on my floor to do my best,” he said of patient centered care. “I am always hungry for rewards. They tell me I do a good job and I like to be in a place where I’m satisfied.”
The long-term acute care facility serves as an extension of ICU care, serving the metro and rural communities, said Diane Metscher, business development director. The average stay at the 31-bed hospital is about 25 days.
“Patients come to us for specialty care, ventilator weaning, severe wounds, and post-op complications. So, they’re very critical when they come here,” Metscher said.
As a charge nurse he creates a plan of action to share with the nursing staff. Retimi is also a nursing preceptor by mentoring, monitoring and teaching undergraduate nursing students. Nursing is a rewarding and stressful job, he said.
“I have 10 years of nursing experience, so I can be their mentor. I can guide them,” Retimi explained. “I can help them transfer from book knowledge that they already have and turn it into good skills to make an impact in compassionate care.”
He tells them they need to prepare themselves mentally and physically. There are many responsibilities associated with a nursing career.
“We are dealing with people’s lives and dealing with their emotions and their feelings,” he said. “You have to prepare yourself and know that you can do it. You can make a change in people’s lives. Nursing is not a job for me, it’s a passion. I’d like to grow more. I’m still looking for those opportunities”
Retimi said his upbringing in Nepal prepared him to meet the challenge. Many of his family members struggled with health issues.
“As a child I thought I’ve got to do something. The way I saw my family suffer, I didn’t want anyone else to suffer,” Retimi said. “So that motivated me. And I encouraged myself by deciding to go to school. I said to myself ‘This is for me.’”
His father wanted his son to be in health care. His dad set an example for him as a politician bettering his community. So as a fifth-grader, Retimi followed his father’s example by choosing to volunteer in a health clinic that was near his home. The boy cleaned the clinic’s surroundings, picked up trash, and mopped the floor with his friends. This led him to a deeper sense of community.
“I had a quality for nursing at that time. I loved to see people smile. I love to help. That gives me satisfaction,” Retimi said. “When I lay down on my bed, I think about what I do. It is to make some changes in someone’s life. If I save somebody’s life today from passing, or if someone is emotionally distressed and I’m able to support them, comfort them, and they feel good about it, then when I go home, I think that’s what I needed to do — that’s what I’m here for.”
Nursing has made him a better person in many ways. First and foremost, his heart is telling him minute-by-minute what he needs to do.
“To help them is to help myself,” he explained. “Besides that, it is a good career for me. It gives me stability.”
In fact, Retini and his wife, Sanchita, are both registered nurses who live in Edmond with their 3-year-old son, Aayan. Retini spends most of his leisure time with his son. His parents chose Sanchita to be his bride, which is customary in Nepal.
“I felt by the way she was talking that we would be so compatible together,” he said. His wife was a NICU nurse back home when he first met her after traveling back to Nepal.
Retini hopes his son will one day marry a nurse, too.
