Česky
You have been working at the Hořovice Hospital since you were fifteen years old. What led you to the health care sector?
As a young boy I was treated for a quite severe form of asthma. As it bothered me a lot, I spent a lot of time in the hospital and, paradoxically, I developed a relationship with the healthcare system in this way. At the age of fifteen I decided to go to medical school and in my first year I went to work at the hospital in Hořovice.
How did you gradually get to the position you have now? I mean, the director of the Diagnostic Centre of Hořovice Hospital and at the same time the deputy director of the hospital?
My career progression started with the aforementioned temporary job in the ARO department of Hořovice Hospital. I spent a lot of time there, almost every weekend. There was a great team there with whom I got along. During the brigade I was finishing my secondary medical school and after graduation I stayed in the same department. The big advantage was that I already knew everyone at work, so I didn't have to worry about the unfamiliar environment. I remember this period very fondly.
During my work, I finished the Vocational College in Pilsen and a year after I had finished my studies, I was offered the position of head nurse of the internal medicine department by the then head of the department, MUDr. Michal Průša, who is now the director of the hospital. I was surprised, because my colleagues were much more experienced and older. This is what makes our company unique. If you have the ambition and desire to work, you will get the opportunity. I didn't hesitate and despite all the positions I held in the hospital, I now work as Deputy Chief Operating Officer for the Hořovice Hospital and at the same time I work as Director of the Diagnostic Centre in Nové Butovice.
But you also worked as a head nurse. Was the transition from the position of head nurse of the ward challenging?
During my time as head nurse of the internal ward, I was approached at the turn of 2018 and 2019 to take over the position of head nurse. I accepted this position, but not with a light heart. It was hard to say goodbye to that department. I felt like I was leaving my own family. However, I still keep in touch with the ward and when I can, I take services to be that ward nurse again at least a few times. A lot has happened in the charge nurse position, especially the covid. So I had to deal with the organisation of the infectious disease ward, the sampling points, testing and pretty much everything that was associated with the pandemic right from the edge of my role. It was a very difficult period for all of us, but I think that this period really brought us together as a collective. I found that I could rely on these people, that they were able to help me and that together we could get through the hard times.
In 2020, the construction of the Diagnostic Centre of Hořovice Hospital in Prague's Nové Butovice began. Shortly after its opening, I was approached to see if I would be willing to move from the position of head nurse to deputy for operational management and also the position of operations director of the diagnostic centre. I accepted, taking it as a new challenge. So I divide my activities exactly in half between the hospital in Horovice and the diagnostic centre.
So you had to complete the necessary education gradually over the years. Wasn't that difficult for you?
Of course it was difficult. De facto, I sacrificed all my free time to work or study. I studied by distance learning and I am very grateful for having had that opportunity. I combined both education and practice. You have to see it as a long-term investment in your life. I just had to survive having less private time.
Did you expect such a change? After all, now you don't just have general nurses under you, but a much wider range of staff.
Yes, it's a change, but as a head nurse you don't just meet nurses. You interact with the doctors, the technical staff of the hospital, maintenance, stores and so on. You know these people and you deal with them every day. So it wasn't that big a shock, it was just the responsibility that changed. I have an overview of what my colleagues were grumbling about or what they were praising, and I can capitalise on all this in a leadership position to the benefit of staff and patients.
What has been the most challenging part of being a charge nurse, and conversely, what have you enjoyed the most?
I am a person who likes to have an overview. Being in the position of head nurse made me aware of everything that was going on in the hospital. There is also a very nice team of senior nurses here, we worked perfectly together. The thing that was the hardest thing about the position was the covid period. In hindsight, I am very proud of the entire nursing staff who handled the situation as well as they could.
The hospital must have gone through a lot of changes during your tenure. What are the ones you would highlight?
Just recently, a colleague and I were saying to a nurse who was celebrating 45 years in the hospital how she must have been through an awful lot. Come to think of it, I've been through a lot too. The owner privatized the hospital in 2007 and I have worked there since 2006. There have been so many changes, you wouldn't believe it. The owner has invested huge resources in the hospital, which is obvious at first glance. In 2011, the wings were extended, the comfort of the patients was increased, and all the wards were renovated, including the equipment. I dare not, and I do not want to say what the hospital would have looked like if it had not been privatised. I doubt that anyone, any entity, be it the city or the state, would be able to invest such resources.
What is your favourite experience associated with Hořovice Hospital?
Favourite experience? There are many experiences, of course, but if I had to highlight one, it would be the birth of my daughter in the Maternity Hospital U Sluneční brány. She was born a month early and it wasn't easy, so she had to lie in neonatology. It's been a while now and I can boast of a beautiful and healthy daughter.
What do you feel is the difference between the administration of Hořovice Hospital and the Diagnostic Centre of Hořovice Hospital?
The only thing I can think of is the size. The intervention in the diagnostic centre is of course more visible than in the hospital, which is several times bigger. The approach to the people is still the same, and the style of work hasn't changed.
Where would you like the Diagnostic Centre of Hořovice Hospital to move to?
My goal is to have all outpatient clinics staffed with quality and capable doctors, as it is now. Also, to be able to provide care a little more widely and to meet patient demand for those less accessible specialties, such as a rheumatologist, another gynecologist, a diabetologist, and possibly an adult practitioner. I guess what I would be most in favour of is that we be a model for our health care system and a model of how that care can be done too and that it can be done differently.
