PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — As a young girl, Trish Tompkins always dreamed of someday becoming a nurse. Never did she imagine that three of her four children and her daughter-in-law would all follow in her footsteps.
“Patients have come to me and told me they’ve had our whole family care for them. It makes me feel wonderful. I have had physicians come to me and tell me how skilled and professional my children are. They are all known for being incredibly giving and caring,” said Trish, beaming with a mother’s pride.
The story began more than three decades ago when Trish followed her passion and enrolled in the nursing program offered locally through the University of Maine at Augusta. Immediately upon graduation in 1981, she was hired as a registered nurse at TAMC and has since worked on the surgical floor, endoscopy unit and now in day surgery. It has come full circle as her youngest daughter, 21-year-old Kimberly, is currently a first-year nursing student at Northern Maine Community College doing clinical rotations at TAMC.
The first to follow in his mother’s footsteps was oldest son, Derek, 30. Now in his 10th year on TAMC’s nursing staff and an RN first assist in the operating room, Derek recalls visiting his mother at work as a young child. But, it wasn’t until he job shadowed in the operating room while in high school that he discovered he shared his mother’s passion of caring for others.
“It’s an honor to take care of people, and I think it’s important to take care of people in your own community,” said Derek. “As a nurse, I could go anywhere, but I want to be here.”
Adding to the dynasty of local caregivers, Derek, who earned his nursing degree at NMCC in 2002, married a fellow nursing student he met while on campus. Jennifer O’Keefe Tompkins, a 31-year-old native of Nova Scotia, 2004 NMCC graduate and registered nurse, works in the recovery room at TAMC. The couple have two young children, 4-year-old Keira and 2-year-old Nathan.
“Like all parents, we ask our daughter Keira what she wants to be when she grows up? She always says she wants to be a nurse because that’s all she knows,” said Jennifer.
The same could be said for Trish Tompkins’ second child, Josh. However, the path to a nursing career wasn’t always clear for the 29-year-old. He had intended to go into the construction field and started in the electrical construction and maintenance program at NMCC. He then transferred to the emergency medical services (EMS) program and enjoyed it so much he decided to complete the associate degree nursing program, graduating in 2009 from the same program as his older brother, Derek and sister-in-law, Jennifer.
“I’ve certainly had a lot of influence from my family. The best part about a nursing career is that if you don’t like working in one area, you can find something else that interests you. It’s an ever-changing field,” said Josh, who began in the medical/surgical unit at TAMC after earning his degree, and last year transferred to the intensive care unit.
“It’s really great! It’s not too many people who, in their workday, pass their mother in the hallway, get a patient from their brother and another from their sister-in-law, and before leaving work get to visit with their baby sister who is onsite for her clinicals,” said Josh.
It was through a life-altering experience a few years ago with youngest sibling Kimberly that the Tompkins family had the opportunity to truly measure the impact of their profession firsthand. Faced with a cancer diagnosis at the young age of 17, the family saw for themselves the critically important role caring and skilled medical professionals play in the patient experience.
“We had such wonderful care for Kimberly. From surgery to the oncology team to the many nurses and physicians we worked with here at TAMC, we found all to be very caring people,” said Trish.
Now in remission, Kimberly looks back at those difficult days and those who saw her through it — both family members and the TAMC team who treated her — as the inspiration for her own career choice.
“I didn’t know what I wanted to do. But I met so many great nurses after my cancer diagnosis that I realized it was the right choice for me,” said Kimberly. “Plus, I knew I would have plenty of resources to help with my homework around the dinner table.”
Kimberly is on track to graduate in May 2013. She hopes to join her mother, brothers and sister-in-law on the nursing staff at TAMC.
On the heels of National Nurses Day, which was May 6, the Tompkins family has a great deal to celebrate. The day, and week that follows, set aside to recognize the contributions of nurses, holds special meaning for the family that is in the business of caring.
“I always wanted to be able to help people. When someone comes in at their most vulnerable time and puts their trust in us and relies on our professional skills to see them through a challenging time it is incredibly rewarding to be a part of that. It’s very much an honor for people to trust you like that on their journey,” said Trish.
Others comprising the Tompkins clan include Trish’s husband, Randy, and next to youngest daughter, Kristina, along with her husband, Cole Putnam and their two children, 4-year-old Madelyn and 1-year-old Natalie.
Interestingly enough, where Trish, Derek, Josh, Jennifer and Kimberly call health care their family business, Randy and Kristina also work together in the other family business — Buck’s Market in Presque Isle.
