Employee Spotlight
Susan Hernandez
Susan Hernandez, RN, understands roots. They keep her grounded in her nursing profession; they nourish her passion for her patients and they remind her of why she does what she loves best, caring for people who might otherwise have no health care.
Susan is the Center Director for Sequoia’s Orange and Butler site. But she remembers clearly what it was like to grow up in a family not unlike the families she sees and serves, day in and day out at Sequoia.
“What’s so special about my job is that my family was a migrant worker family so I know first hand the fear and struggle those parents go through to find health care for their families. Back then, there weren’t many places available for migrant families. So to be a part of Sequoia now makes it extra special for me,” she said.
“I love the population we serve. A lot of our patients can be fearful and not really trusting. When I let them know that there is a program that can help them, the relief on their faces makes my job worthwhile,” she said.
Sue grew up in Tulare and enlisted in the Air Force, graduating in 1975. Along the way, she met and married Ray, her husband of 30 years. They have two grown children, Jennifer and Joseph. It was Jennifer who was ultimately responsible for Susan’s move from military service to health service.
“When my daughter was three, I received orders to go to Korea,” she said. It would have meant leaving Jennifer behind so Sue ended her enlistment and enrolled in the nursing program at Weber State University in Ogden, Utah. She graduated in 1987 and joined the Weber Community Health Center as an RN Nurse Supervisor. “I’ve worked at Community Health Centers my whole nursing career,” she said.
While at Weber, she came to oversee the Utah Migrant Health Program and was recognized as a health advocate for the migrant community, a commitment she has continued to honor in her work with Sequoia Community Health Centers.
Ray retired from the military in 1991 and they returned to Fresno in 1993. Even though Susan had grown up in Tulare, returning to Fresno was a shock after the slow pace of Ogden. “It took a little getting used to,” she said.
Sue started with Sequoia in 1998 as an RN Manager and was promoted to Center Director of the Orange and Butler site in 2004. While her position is primarily administrative, she still enjoys direct patient care. “I choose to work the floor just to keep my hand in,” she says. It was Susan’s dedication to both these aspects of nursing that led Dr. John Maffeo to nominate Susan for the Central Valley Coalition of Nursing Organization’s RN of the Year award which she received in May.
“As a clinic administrator, Sue expresses a great deal of compassion for her patients and for her staff,” Maffeo said. “She has a commitment to providing the best care possible and her staff demonstrates this same level of commitment based on her role modeling.”
When she is not at Sequoia, Sue loves to bake and garden. In her garden, you’ll find irises, roses, geraniums, jasmine and more. The irises are especially dear to Susan. “Being in the military, Ray and I moved around a lot. My mom’s favorite flower was the iris. Each time we’d move, I’d plant iris, let them grow and when the time came, I’d dig them up and take them with me to the next place.” Growing in her garden now are some of those same irises, a legacy of growth, change and family connection. A legacy of roots, you might say.
Previous Employee Spotlights
• Susan Hernandez• Leslie Taylor, M.D.
