Meet Brookfield Resident and RVNA Nurse Julie Gold

It's National Nurses Week and the RVNA is putting a spotlight on their talented nursing staff! Meet Julie Gold.

Another of RVNA’s exceptional nurses, Julie has been in the field for 15 years and with RVNA for six. A natural nurturer, Julie can’t imagine a career anywhere else. We can’t either!

Where did you grow up?
New Milford, CT

When did you decide you wanted to become a nurse?
After high school, I did a two-year medical assistant program and then got a job working in a doctor’s office, but I knew it wasn’t where I wanted to stay. A friend convinced me to sign up for an LPN program with her. It turns out that my friend decided not to do the program, but I did, and I loved it! I always knew that I loved caring for and helping people, so when I finished my LPN program, I went straight on to become an RN.

What is your favorite part of nursing?
When a patient says, “Thank you. I couldn’t have gotten through it without you.” It really makes me feel like I made a difference. It’s incredible.

If you weren’t a nurse, what would you be?
I don’t even know. This is what I love. I really don’t think there would be anything else.

What do you love to do when you’re not working?
I have an eight-year-old daughter. I love spending my free time with her. She’s like my best friend — we do everything together.

What would you do if you won the lottery?
I would travel. I feel like that’s the one thing I haven’t done because I’ve spent a lot of time on schooling. But, I would probably still work. Money only gets you so much in life!

Do you have a favorite nursing moment or story to share?
There was a man I cared for who had been on dialysis for many years. I had cared for him for a while and we got very close. At this point, the dialysis was the only thing keeping him alive. I had the sense he was continuing for his family, but that he wasn’t living his life.  One day, I started to talk to him about hospice. The next day, he went into an inpatient hospice facility that he chose for himself. He was able to call all his friends and family to say goodbye. Because he wasn’t receiving dialysis anymore, his diet wasn’t restricted, and he was able to eat his favorite foods again. He called to thank me for allowing him to die his way. He always knew what he wanted. He just needed someone to help him say it.

Learn more about the RVNA here.

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Submitted by Brookfield, CT

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