no matter where, Pam just wanted to be in nursing care

From the windy city to the gem city, no matter where, Pam just wanted to be in nursing care!

After Pam Bucaro's husband was offered a job with the City of Dayton, relocating six hours south east from their Chicago home came with one condition - that there was a children's hospital nearby. 

Nine minutes down the road sat Dayton Children's Hospital. Pam walked through the hospital doors and thirty-three years later, she's never walked out. Prior to her current role as a clinical nurse specialist in emergency services, Pam worked in Dayton Children's PICU, almost home unit, home care and the emergency department.

"The patients and their families, the front line staff and our excellent leadership team, both in the emergency department and throughout the hospital, are what inspire me to continue to go above and beyond," said Pam.

Other above and beyond motivators happen when we least expect them. One of these random moments, those that remind staff why they fell in love with pediatric health care, happened to Pam early in her career. She manually ventilated a baby that stopped breathing. Her efforts allowed the baby to return home.

"The attending on-call that night told me that I saved that patient's life," said Pam. "That was really meaningful."

In 2013, Pam was nominated and named the Emergency Nurses Association's Clinical Nurse Specialist of the Year. The award recognizes a clinical nurse specialist who makes significant contributions to nursing practice and the professional development of others.

"I love my job because I am part of a team that works tirelessly to deliver the most up-to-date, high quality, evidence-based care to our patients," said Pam.

"I enjoy problem solving, developing processes for care delivery and educating the clinical staff, " she said.

These talents have shined house wide.

Pam helped develop our outreach nurse program. Debuting in 2007, the program designates nurses to provide post-discharge follow up to families after discharge from one of our emergency services locations. In 2021, she co-founded Dayton Children's first comprehensive staff support program, flight support, and was named as the program's official coordinator. 

"I am privileged to work closely with the outreach nurses, trauma nurse leaders, family support team and staff support colleagues," said Pam. "My colleagues provide continuous motivation, support, leadership and assistance with so many projects and clinical initiatives."

Thank you, Pam, for 33 years of service to Dayton Children's!

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