The Servant Leader: Patient Care Services Director Guides by Example

It’s Monday at Shriners Children’s Greenville and Hope Barbour, director, patient care services, has already joined the daily staff huddle in the outpatient department, met with the hospital’s employee health nurse regarding how to approach a potentially sensitive issue, completed a call with an international relief organization requesting to transfer additional patients from a war-torn territory for care, stepped in for the traveling hospital administrator to oversee a department leadership meeting, and helped troubleshoot an assistive device issue in the inpatient unit – and it’s only mid-morning.

“When I say ‘no two days are ever the same,’ I sincerely mean it, and I also truly enjoy that every day presents its own set of challenges and opportunities,” Barbour said. “We have so many children who need us – not just here in our region, or even in the United States, but from around the world. Later today, I’ll evaluate a staffing matrix meant to serve as a solution to the significant uptick in surgeries that we are seeing because of this. What a fantastic puzzle to put all the pieces in place.”

Barbour, who earned her master’s degree in healthcare leadership, began her career as a respiratory therapist. She said she then decided that nursing offered a broader scale of care that piqued her interest in a greater way. “When I was 10, I was taught to administer insulin to my grandmother, who was diabetic. So, at a very young age I realized I could make a difference by providing care to someone in need.”

In recent years, Barbour has learned that difference may also be made by empowering other nurses with the knowledge they need to provide care. As Shriners Children’s international outreach stretched to El Salvador, Barbour worked in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) in the developing nation, training PICU nurses how to manage post-surgical spine patients. Her active involvement with the global efforts of Shriners Children’s has quickly gained a special place in the heart of the mother of two grown children.

“Having the opportunity to spend time with each child who has undergone a life-changing procedure we have provided means a lot,” Barbour said. “The most meaningful thing is having the children and their families from foreign soil continuing to keep in touch as the years pass. The patients we’ve treated have all had remarkable outcomes, and they still continue to call and write. Developing these lifelong friendships is something I will always cherish.”

In addition to talented surgeons, Barbour said she is grateful that her role also interfaces with almost all departments in the hospital on a daily basis – from care management, surgical services and radiology to rehabilitation, motion analysis and child life. “Whatever my title may be, in my heart I am always a nurse first, and I am fortunate to work with the best collaborative team in the world.

Barbour also serves on the board of the local chapter of the Ronald McDonald House, which provides housing for many Shriners Children’s Greenville families while their loved one receives treatment.