How long have you worked at Buffalo State College and if applicable what other areas have you worked/positions have you served in at Buffalo State College?
I have been employed at Buffalo State College as a Registered Nurse in the Weigel Health Center since December of 2010. I have taken many courses at BSC and I am certified as a Train the Trainer, QPR, in which I have participated with the Counseling Centers in training the EOP students to recognize, and facilitate fellow classmates, friends and family members who may be suicidal, ACS (American College of Surgeons) Stop the Bleed., Narcan training, and lastly, Covid-19 Contact Tracing trainer. I also assist in managing as well as follow up and training BSC personnel in using Medicat EHR/Campus Portal.
What motivates you to provide excellent services for your colleagues, students, and supervisor?
I want the students to be successful. The students at BSC motivate me, I tell them this often. I love to hear their stories because they inspire me, and I live vicariously through them. I love to motivate them as well. I will ask them their major and their plans after graduation. Some have no idea what they will be doing. I tell them that the sky is the limit, and they will figure it out one day. Others know exactly what they want to do and have planned all the steps to get to their final goal, I am so impressed by them. The ones in-between I listen, give advice if needed and let them know I am here to help.
What personal philosophy about working with others guides your day-to-day work?
I work in an environment where we help and rely on each other on a daily basis. Our main goal is to provide great care to the BSC campus. Although the last year has been a trying one, we all phenomenally came together and kept to our main goal.
The philosophies I heed by are ones that were taught to me by my parents, along with one told to me by a preceptor when I was in the surgical technician program. My parents taught me to be polite, to respect yourself and others. If you do not have anything nice to say to anyone, then do not say anything at all. Forty-two years ago, my preceptor told me you are in a field with mostly women therefore if you have a disagreement with someone, talk directly to the person about the issue, instead of speaking about them behind their back. She also told me to write my lock code onto various places around my locker because I will get old one day and forget it. (I still do this).
What do you do when you are not working?
My home time is spent hanging with my great nieces and nephews (Not so much last year), we love to go fishing and to the park. I love to cook, read, and online shop.
Rita provides a very student-centered environment where all students feel safe and secure especially during these unpredictable times with her calming demeanor. Rita goes above and beyond in every aspect of her job and wears many hats. On one hat, she is a nurse helping students, on another she is an advisor guiding students towards the awareness and importance of good health, and lastly, she is an IT expert maintaining a system that has had many changes to it this year, particularly with the COVID-19 pandemic. With the many challenges she faces, she continues to provide exceptional healthcare to our students. She volunteers her time to help with surveillance testing for the campus community. When she is not testing systems or administering vaccines, she is maintaining the Health web portal used for immunizations, COVID-19 screening and contact tracing among other vital health related areas necessary to maintain good health and safety of the campus. Occasionally, we would talk after hours either by video conferencing or on the phone about how our workday was going, and she would always make me laugh with her delightful humor. Rita is extremely generous too. While we were on the phone, she would pause, and I would hear her give a donation to a person in need or she would speak out against injustices that occur. That is the kind of caring person she is. I don't know what I would do if I didn’t have my friend, Rita Sumers to work and laugh with over the years. She is well deserving of this award and in my opinion, her recognition is long overdue.
Rita is a kind and patient person. Behind the scenes during COVID-19 Rita has spearheaded the administration of the student (and now F/S) collection of information daily through medicat. She has to assist non-Weigel staff in understanding the system and with their access to information. This is helpful to our students so we can assure the best support to them while they are in quarantine and isolation. She works hard to administer the system and in my opinion is the "Oz behind the curtain".
I would say her patience, and welcoming attitude to all staff who need to learn differently about a difficult and new technology is critical to the success of our COVID 19 implementation.
Rita is a kind person who is fun and outgoing. At COVID19 testing she is administering flu vaccines for students who are at the testing site and she is fun and energetic outreaching to students walking by trying to capture their attention.
The amount of change that has occurred during COVID19 is obviously unprecedented. Rita has rolled with the new needs of her areas with patience, kindness and openness to those that normally would not be involved in her daily work. In addition, she always has a wonderful attitude!
