Maria Manzella, Ocean University Medical Center, has worked at Hackensack Meridian for 26 years, and lives by the advice her college swim coach gave her - PACE yourself: Positive Attitude Changes Everything. Maria was recently honored for her commitment to new knowledge and innovation and is a clinical nurse educator described as a sought after resource for her colleagues. Maria also serves as an adjunct professor at Georgian Court University and helps to prepare future nurses with her balance of setting the bar high while remaining intuitive and compassionate.

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• What inspired you to become a nurse?

As a young child, I helped my parents care for a chronically ill family member. I found satisfaction in helping others and making them smile.

• What do you love most about the nursing profession?

Nursing offers a variety of career paths and affords us the opportunity for continuous learning. I love to teach and empower my colleagues and the community we serve about their health.

• On the heels of the pandemic and other challenges, why do you stay?

The pandemic in conjunction with the disruption of supplies unfolded unforeseen challenges. The teamwork and collaboration amongst disciplines at HMH was unparalleled in providing best care.

• What advice would you give to someone who is considering a career in nursing at HMH?

Identify a mentor to help you grow in your nursing career. I would also advocate the importance of self-care in fostering their success.

• Share a fact that most people don’t know about you.

I was a competitive swimmer growing up and throughout my college career.

• What activities do you participate in when you’re not working?

I enjoy family time, cooking, listening to music, swimming, weight lifting, hot yoga and reading.

• What are some unchecked items on your bucket list?

Visiting my roots in Italy and completing a half ironman.

Eric Gossar, Southern Ocean University Medical Center, has worked at Hackensack Meridian for 8 Years, starting his journey as a Patient Care Technician and monitor tech before earning his nursing degree. He currently serves as assistant nurse manager of the Intensive Care Unit. Eric was recently honored for his transformational leadership and is described by colleagues as someone who inspires, influences, motivates, encourages and empowers others to achieve excellent outcomes.

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• What inspired you to become a nurse?

I come from a whole family of nurses, and coming out of high school I wanted to do something different. I transitioned through a few different majors and careers. I was also in and out of the hospital during this time and having a rough time getting a diagnosis. I was exposed to the nursing field during my time in the hospital and I was very intrigued after seeing what they do day in and day out and the impact they can make. With my mom’s support, I got a job as a patient observer and I have been hooked on the nursing profession since and have not looked back.

• What do you love most about the nursing profession?

The one thing I love most about the nursing profession is the amount of impact they can make each day they work. Not many other professions have the same reach.

• On the heels of the pandemic and other challenges, why do you stay?

I stay for the patients and my team. Regardless of what is going on in the world, patients still need care and guidance in their darkest hours.

• What advice would you give to someone who is considering a career in nursing at HMH?

I would say to do it. HMH has given me many opportunities to grow and advance my skills and my career. To be a relatively newer nurse and have a chance to become an assistant manager of a critical care unit speaks volumes to the opportunities HMH can provide. Also the teamwork and team members I have been exposed to here are second to none.

• Share a fact that most people don’t know about you.

I watch the TV show “Friends” every night before bed.

• What activities do you participate in when you’re not working?

I like to work with my hands and do jobs around the house, fixing things up.

• What are some unchecked items on your bucket list?

Just to take my wife and two kids to Disney and other cool places like Italy or Spain. However, my personal one is for a trip to Bora Bora with a cottage over the blue water.

Carter Kurtus, Jersey Shore University Medical Center, has worked at Hackensack Meridian for 3 ½ years, beginning their nursing career as a new graduate right after the pandemic was ramping up in New Jersey. Carter was recently honored for her commitment to structural empowerment, enhanced shared governance at the hospital to amplify the nursing voice and improve patient care and outcomes.

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• What inspired you to become a nurse?

My Grandma Rose. She was a nurse and everything she did was done out of love. I live my life and practice as a nurse in her honor.

• What do you love most about the nursing profession?

My patients and their families. I love the relationships that are formed. Patients and their families come in during a time when they are most vulnerable and we as nurses are given the opportunity to be their best advocates.

• On the heels of the pandemic and other challenges, why do you stay?

I started nursing only a few months before COVID-19 hit our hospitals. I was a new graduate in the ICU and was immediately thrown into one of the hardest and scariest situations in healthcare. Despite how difficult it was, I found community, friendship, and support in my coworkers.

• What advice would you give to someone who is considering a career in nursing at HMH?

Do it. HMH is a huge network which opens the doors to many different opportunities in nursing.

• Share a fact that most people don’t know about you.

I used to act as a kid, my very first job was a voice over.

• What activities do you participate in when you’re not working?

I love reading and am a new runner. Anything that I can do outside in the fresh air.

• What are some unchecked items on your bucket list?

I want to prioritize traveling and seeing new places. My brother and I have always wanted to go to Israel together, so that is the top of my list.

Pamela Fake, Hackensack University Medical Center, has worked at Hackensack Meridian for more than a decade and calls nursing not just a job, but a lifeline. Pam was recently honored for her commitment to exemplary professional practice and is described by her colleagues as one of the most involved bedside nurses in the orthopedic unit as well as helping to establish a high standard of patient care and evidence-based practice.

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• What inspired you to become a nurse?

As a child I vacillated between being a teacher and a nurse. When I was a child, my mom was sick and I watched the care she received. I also had an older cousin who became a nurse and she always had the best stories. I chose to be a nurse and by doing so get the best of being both a nurse and a teacher, as we know nurses spend a lot of time educating patients and our team.

• What do you love most about the nursing profession?

I love being a part of a team and I work with an incredible team on the orthopedics unit. It gives me an opportunity to make a difference for my patients, their families, and my fellow team members, and share my knowledge with them. I also am able to learn new things from the people I meet everyday. No day is ever the same and there are many opportunities to be creative.

• On the heels of the pandemic and other challenges, why do you stay?

For me, nursing is not just my job, it is my lifeline. I love the opportunities that are presented to me even when they are challenging. I cannot imagine working in any other vocation. 

• What advice would you give to someone who is considering a career in nursing at HMH?

Working at HMH presents many opportunities. Working with the team, I have found that everybody has a voice within the patient care we provide. Leadership is always offering us opportunities to excel. I love my team and the people I work with.

• Share a fact that most people don’t know about you.

I love to play video games and arcade games. My favorite game is Skee Ball - but really I just love them all.

• What activities do you participate in when you’re not working?

Most recently I find myself chasing after my 3 year old daughter, who is keeping me young. Otherwise I love anything outside/ including gardening, photography and occasionally sewing.

• What are some unchecked items on your bucket list?

Travel to as many different places as possible with my family and finish my quilt I have started.

Sherly Castro, Raritan Bay Medical Center, has worked at Hackensack Meridian for 31 years and was recently honored for her commitment to empirical outcomes, making essential contributions to nursing workflow, practice environment, patient experience and clinical outcomes. Sherly is described by colleagues as inquisitive, dedicated to evidence-based practice, and constantly thinking of ways to improve the care of patients in the ICU.

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• What inspired you to become a nurse? 

At a younger age I was taking care of my aunt so taking care of people seems to be my second nature. Additionally, a lot of people in my family are nurses thus the influence.

• What do you love most about the nursing profession? 

The emotional rewards one incurs when taking care of patients. Working in healthcare is complex. One encounters different issues daily, patients and colleagues from diverse backgrounds, bringing many opportunities to learn and grow.

• On the heels of pandemic and other challenges, why do you stay?

Because I am happy here. The organizational culture is awesome. Just culture is encouraged that allows employees to speak about safety issues without being judged, but listened to, and translated into changes for a better work-flow and healthier work environment. I also like that we do self-scheduling which allows work-life balance.

• What advice would you give to someone who is considering a career in nursing at HMH?

Do it! I have been working in one of the HMH hospitals for 31 years now. People are great - multidisciplinary collaboration, and support exists. Patient safety and quality of care is always the priority, and to achieve that leadership encourages growth and development of the staff. Tuition reimbursement and education days are available. Staff are held to a higher standard. Annual competencies are held, and learning opportunities are promulgated. Individual achievements are recognized and celebrated.

• Share the best piece of advice anyone has ever given you. 

“Treat others the way you want to be treated.”

Kayce Spader, Southern Ocean Medical Center, is a patient transport aide recently honored for her compassionate care. While relatively new to the hospital, Kayce’s colleagues shared that she is already making a significant difference with patience experience.

• How long have you worked at Hackensack Meridian?

I began working in November 2022, and have loved every moment of it.

• What inspired you to join the health care profession?

After raising my family, I wanted to find a career where I could make a difference and feel good about the people I helped at the end of the day.

• What do you consider to be the best part of your job?

The best part of my job is helping someone who is scared or upset to smile. Just a few simple, kind words, holding someone's hand or even a hug can make such a huge difference in someone's day.

Ramon Agtarap, Bayshore Medical Center, is a monitor tech recently honored for his courageous commitment to upholding the standards of quality, safety and service at Hackensack Meridian and constantly striving to achieve operational excellence. Ramon will graduate with his nursing degree in September.  (+ PHOTO)

• How long have you worked at Hackensack Meridian?

I have worked at Hackensack Meridian for the past 15 months. 

• What inspired you to join the health care profession?

Over 10 years ago my wife and I were not aware that our world would be turned upside down. What we hoped to be a mild case of endometriosis that could be treated with surgery would eventually lead to a diagnosis of stage 4 ovarian cancer. At that time, we felt helpless, hopeless and a strong sense of sadness overcame us. We were deflated and thought there was very little hope. After getting my wife to another facility for a second opinion and being given a course of action by the oncologist, we got ourselves together and upon meeting with the nurses, we had a newfound motivation. It was to do anything for my wife to live, to survive and to thrive.

Throughout our journey we encountered some of the most amazing nurses one could ask for. They cared unconditionally, they cried with us, they laughed with us, and they celebrated with us. They never let us feel alone. It was the nurses that made life more bearable. Over the course of the 10 years that my wife underwent several procedures and was subject to a battery of medications, I learned that a nurse is truly someone who makes a commitment to your healing and recovery not knowing you from the next person on the street. It was this revelation that inspired me to pursue a career in nursing.

After 20 years of being out of school and working in the field of information technology I made the decision to return and finish my degree in nursing. I was so inspired by the exceptional care given to my wife that it only felt right to join one of the noblest professions there is. I heard the call to return to the clinical setting and I couldn’t ignore it. The message kept telling me to be an instrument to healing.

Working as a telemetry monitor technician, I have the good fortune of working with nurses daily and nothing can be better than this. I have the opportunity to continue getting inspired by experiencing firsthand the passion and compassion that it takes to be a nurse. The nurses I work with are helping to shape the future nurse that I will become. They continue to inspire and motivate me and are constant reminders of the nurse that I aspire to be.

Working at Hackensack Meridian has paved my path to becoming an exceptional nurse. One that will treat patients with kindness and compassion day in and day out. I was taught at an early age that passion is important when choosing a career. To become a nurse will epitomize that very tenet. Every night when I lay my head down, I can say with confidence that today I made a difference working hand in hand with nurses to maintain the highest standards to uphold patient safety and ultimately improve outcomes.

• What do you consider to be the best part of your job?

To be able to work with an amazing team of clinicians that are passionate about their work and focused on patient-centered care.

Fredy Figueroa, Jersey Shore University Medical Center, is a patient observer recently honored with the Connected Award, which recognizes a clinical partner driven by a strong sense of purpose. Fredy went above and beyond to help a struggling patient, who shared, “He selflessly thought of someone else and how to help them. Not only did he raise my spirits and bring happy tears to my eyes, he completely raised the bar and erased any negative impacts I might have had upon coming to the hospital.

• How long have you worked at Hackensack Meridian?

I’ve been at HMH for 1 year and 6 months.

• What inspired you to join the health care profession?

Most of my family works in health care. I have a few aunts that are nurses and my grandpa was a doctor in Peru. He actually helped my mom deliver me, and once I got to a certain age, he would tell me stories about working at the hospital. It inspired me.

• What do you consider to be the best part of your job?

The best part of my job is making sure that I’ve done everything I can to ensure my patients are taken care of, even if I just tell them a joke to make them laugh or smile.