In honor of National Nurses Week, we will be running a blog series where you’ll get to know a few of our nurses who are at the heart of every aspect of patient care at Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS). In our second installment, meet Ann Bienstock. Read our previous installments here.
1. Can you tell us your name, unit, and how many years you’ve worked at HSS?
My name is Ann Bienstock, ANP, and I’ve worked in the Occupational Health Services (OHS) for 15 ½ years.
2. What does it mean for you to be a nurse?
Though nursing is based on science and best practices, there is also the belief that nursing is an art. I agree with Nurse Theorist Jean Watson when she says, “Caring is the essence of nursing”.
3. What drove you to pursue a career in nursing?
My great-aunt Rose became a nurse in 1915. She would come after her shift and tend to her sister’s (my grandmother’s) sore legs. This always made my grandmother feel better. It was one of my earliest memories when I was 3 ½ years old; I turned to my aunt and said when I grow up, I am going to be a nurse just like you. My grandmother died when I was 5 years old. On May 17, 1974, my great-aunt, who was now 81 years old, watched me graduate from Beth Israel School of Nursing. I never wavered and 42 years later, I know that it is nursing that helps to nurture my soul.
4. Why do you love being a nurse at HSS?
I always say I have the best nurses’ job at HSS. I know almost everyone here and where to find them. I help to take care of the staff at HSS. Being part of the OHS staff, we are the first department to meet all of the new hires. I have met employees from all over the world, made lasting relationships, have friends here at HSS, and know that wherever I go there will be staff that once worked at HSS who I can tell.
5. Can you give us a fun fact about being a nurse?
Before coming to HSS I worked in television. Anytime a child is under the age of 4, a nurse has to be on set to supervise their care. This was fun because I had the opportunity to be in a non-traditional nurse setting. It was different, but I still could not do this without being a nurse. When I worked in OHS at a previous job, I took care of the men and women who worked on the bridges and tunnels in New York. I had to go out into the field to the bridges and tunnels to take care of the workers. Not the usual settings for a nurse, but these 2 jobs were a fun experience.
