NEW YORK NURSE: July/August 2007
by Nancy Webber
When you visit the office of Tina Gerardi, NYSNA’s new chief executive officer, it’s hard not to notice the mementos that line the walls and bookshelves.
Some you would expect: photos of Gerardi with Senator Hillary Clinton; diplomas and certificates; even some nurse figurines and dolls. But you might not expect the dozens of souvenirs from Walt Disney World. Gerardi has visited the Magic Kingdom more than 50 times – as evidenced by a pencil holder, a cut-glass paperweight, and a wall clock all in the shape of Mickey’s famous ears.
There is no doubt that Gerardi has had a distinguished career as both a registered nurse and an executive. But if you expect coldness and formality from the CEO of the largest state nurses association in the country, you’ll be surprised.
Gerardi’s first job after she graduated from SUNY Plattsburgh was as a staff nurse in the spinal cord trauma/rehab unit at Albany Medical Center.
“I was the only RN for the evening shift on a unit with four spinal cord trauma beds and 17 rehab beds,” she recalled. “The only covering RN was on another floor. As I look back on it now, I should have been terrified. But at the time I didn’t know any better; I just went ahead and did my job.”
She did so well at the job that she soon became the assistant head nurse on the unit and floated to other units throughout the nursing division, including cardiology, HIV/AIDS, neuroscience, and infectious diseases.
After several years, however, she became restless. “I felt that I could do more,” she says. “I even thought about becoming a doctor, but several of my friends who were residents recommended that I continue in nursing – that was my passion.”
Gerardi earned her MS at SUNY Binghamton and returned to Albany Med to work as a clinical nurse specialist. She found, however, that she was doing more quality assurance activities than patient care.
“Quality assurance and systems management were just coming into vogue,” says Gerardi. “I enjoyed the new role, but it definitely pulled me away from direct patient care. Basically, I was being an advocate for all patients by finding better ways to deliver care.” In 1986 she was appointed manager of loss prevention, performing risk management for the entire medical center.
Within a few years Gerardi was hired by nearby Saratoga Hospital as director of quality management. Hospital administrators recognized they needed a quality improvement program after a medical error resulted in the death of an infant and they were cited for more than 50 safety deficiencies.
With the skill of an engineer, Gerardi carefully analyzed, took apart, and rebuilt the patient care systems at Saratoga Hospital. All the deficiencies were remedied.
After her success in Albany and Saratoga, Gerardi was hired as director of clinical consulting services for the Hospital Association of New York State (HANYS).
As head of the fee-for-service program, Gerardi traveled across the state to help hospitals troubleshoot their clinical care systems. “I earned some serious frequent-flier miles,” she says. “You know you’re on the road a lot when you’re on a first-name basis with the pilot and co-pilot on the morning commuter flight.”
During consulting sessions with hospital management, Gerardi often found herself defending the role of the nursing staff: “I always was a passionate patient advocate. Now I was an advocate for nurses as well.”
Gerardi sometimes had to fight to get nurses at the table when new patient care protocols were being discussed. She recalls, “The attitude would be, ‘If the medical staff is here, what more do we need?’ Well, they needed to have the nurses buy into it or it wouldn’t work. Sometimes this delayed the process.”
While she was forging a unique nursing career, Gerardi became active in NYSNA, first at the district level. Susan Fraley, former NYSNA president and current executive director of the Foundation of NYS Nurses, took Gerardi to a meeting of NYSNA District 9 shortly after she began working at Albany Med. She’s been a District 9 member ever since.
Gerardi reactivated the district association’s legislative committee and served as its chair, which led to her appointment as chair of the NYSNA Council on Legislation. She made such an impression on NYSNA leaders that, when a member of the NYSNA Board of Directors resigned in 1992, Gerardi was appointed to fill the vacancy.
As a member of the Board, Gerardi became familiar with NYSNA’s governing structure and staff, including then-Executive Director Martha Orr. It happened that when NYSNA was looking for a deputy executive director in 1998, Gerardi was looking for a new job. “I was committed to the association and I really wanted to work in the not-for-profit environment,” she says.
Gerardi found that her first task as the deputy ED was adjusting to a different kind of crisis mentality. Accustomed to working with hospitals, where crises are often a matter of life and death, she didn’t attach the same urgency to issues such as the Convention keynote speaker or the proper way to structure a report.
In addition, Gerardi says her focus on developing and improving systems was sometimes misunderstood by other staff. “I was used to asking questions such as ‘Are there ways to do that better?’ Although I didn’t mean it personally, some staff members took it as criticism of their work.”
Adjustments were made on both sides. To increase her knowledge of unions and labor law, Gerardi completed courses at the Cornell University School of Industrial and Labor Relations. She also became certified by the American Society of Association Executives.
Lola Fehr succeeded Orr as executive director in 2003 and Gerardi’s role expanded significantly. Although she was an experienced executive, Fehr had never lived in the Northeast and had never been involved in a union environment. Gerardi filled in those gaps to keep NYSNA administration running smoothly.
Fehr left NYSNA in December 2006, and the Board of Directors named Gerardi interim executive director. Six months later, they appointed her to be NYSNA’s first chief executive officer. The Board changed the job title to be consistent with other state and national nursing organizations.
NYSNA President Verlia Brown says Gerardi is the right person for the top executive position: “She knows this organization inside and out. She is highly qualified and completely committed to serving our members.”
“One thing I learned from Martha Orr is to trust the membership,” Gerardi says. “NYSNA members ultimately will do what’s in the best interest of the association.” Among her top goals is to work with the Board to adopt and implement a workable strategic plan. An important component of that plan will be ways to grow the association, both in membership and influence.
“In general, people don’t become involved in their associations until they need some kind of service,” Gerardi explains. “Part of the challenge is to make sure we’re giving members what they need and to inform them about these services.”
Gerardi’s vision is that all registered nurses in the state will have a way to connect with NYSNA. Some may form local bargaining units, some may become NYSNA-direct members (a new option this year), and some may simply register for an educational session. “We want RNs to know that NYSNA is the organization for nurses in New York State,” she says.
There’s one more thing you should know about the office Tina Gerardi has occupied since she began as deputy executive director in 1998. It’s easily accessible, brightly lit, and overlooks the busy parking lot. The official office assigned to the NYSNA top executive is quiet, remote, and overlooks a lawn and garden.
Not surprisingly, the new CEO has decided to stay in her current quarters. Everything – including Mickey – will stay right where it is.