For 45 years, Lisa Messina, BSN, director of nursing at FMOL Health | St. Francis, has dedicated her career to caring for mothers, babies and families. Along the way, she has also helped generations of nurses develop the skills and confidence to continue that care.
A Calling to Care
Lisa began her nursing career at St. Francis in June 1981, inspired by the hospital’s reputation in the community, its Catholic values and a calling that started close to home.
Her mother graduated from the St. Francis nursing school in the 1940s and spent her career caring for others.
“My mother was a nurse for the entire family,” Lisa says. “She took care of everybody.”
At St. Francis, Lisa found another mentor in Debbie Lawrence, RN, her manager in the nursery, who helped teach her how to care for newborns.
Giving Babies Their Best Start
Lisa spent 40 years working in the newborn nursery. She also cared for sick and fragile babies in the special care nursery. She remembers helping parents learn how to feed babies born with cleft lip and palate so they could feel prepared to continue their care at home.
One baby, Emanuel, remains especially close to her heart. He spent more than a year in the special care nursery, and because his mother lived in a rural area and could not visit regularly, Lisa spent time holding and rocking him.
“I would hold one of my fingers in his small hand, and he would grasp my finger as I rocked and loved on him,” Lisa recalls.
Those moments capture what has kept Lisa committed to maternal and child care throughout her career.
“A baby crying when first born is music to a nursery nurse,” she says. “I just wanted to give these babies the best start in life.”
Passing Along a Lifetime of Knowledge
Lisa’s service has extended across numerous areas of St. Francis, from labor and delivery, pediatrics and the NICU to lactation services and pediatric specialty clinics. Today, she serves as nurse manager for the WIC clinic, pediatric surgery clinic, maternal fetal medicine clinic and pediatric audiology clinic.
She has also served as a mentor for many new nurses, helping them develop their own skills and confidence.
“I love the team I work with,” Lisa says. “I have been a preceptor for many new nurses to educate them so they can develop their own newborn skills and talents.”
After 45 years, the reason she continues to serve is simple.
“I love what I do.”
