Angela Rios is our Woman of the Week, nominated for her work as nurse and chaplain. You see her here in her nurse’s scrubs, on her way to class, and being chrismated in 2019. We asked her to tell you about the path she took to both those roles:
“In earlier days, I was fortunate to land a part-time banking job that accommodated my two young sons' school schedule. I was able to put them both on the bus, head to work, and then receive them off the bus. This part-time banking gig turned into a full-time gig when my sons became older and became somewhat of a career for me. One day my husband mentioned that he thought I would make a good nurse. He felt I had something to offer others in the way of physical healing. On a whim and against all odds in terms of a long waiting list to get into my local nursing program, I applied for nursing school and was accepted. I was a bit anxious because math and science did not always come easy for me in school, but my anxiety quickly dispelled on my first day of nursing clinical. I immediately fell in love with caring for others and knew that I had found my purpose. I can still see that day standing in the hallway just outside a patient's room in my crispy white uniform. I knew then that with hard work and determination I would earn my nursing degree and join the medical care team.
“Fresh out of nursing school and unsure of which direction to take my new career in, I interviewed and was happy to secure a nursing position at Duke University Hospital Cardiothoracic step-down unit. In accepting this position my career began as a cardiac nurse. I have been a cardiac nurse for over 14 years in various positions at Duke Hospital and currently at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) where I help manage a thriving procedural area. It was here at VUMC where I found the time to begin working on my Bachelor of Nursing (BSN) at Belmont University. I assumed that I was working on my BSN for advancement in my nursing career and on my last day of class I asked God " What next." I recall this day vividly as in my mind I heard “Divinity School.” I had no idea what this meant and initially wasn't sure I had heard right. I began researching divinity schools and to my surprise found a divinity school in my back yard, so to speak. I reached out to Vanderbilt Divinity School only to find out that the deadline for new students had passed, but that they would be happy to send me information. I was not put off by this as I thought, Okay next year I will start. Just two weeks later I received an email stating that the deadline for new students had been extended. I applied and was accepted and started divinity school just two weeks after graduating from Belmont University with my BSN.
“On my first day of divinity school, I wondered what I was doing there. I felt completely out of my league, and I can recall many days walking across campus asking God if he was still with me. There was a time of deconstruction in the early semesters of divinity school that I am thankful for. Unbeknownst to me, this deconstruction would lead me to Orthodoxy. My husband had been diligently searching for a new church home for us and this led us to many of the local churches and traditions. While he was searching, I kept putting one foot in front of the other in divinity school and kept showing up even when the journey was so unclear to me. During my Global Christianities I course, I began learning about the Eastern Church. At this same time, my husband, after watching a documentary on Mount Athos, became interested in Orthodoxy. After some local searches, he found and visited St. Ignatius Church. I recall the expression on his face after he attended one Sunday when all he could say was 'Angela, you have to come and see for yourself. This is what we have been searching for.' Admittedly, I was a bit skeptical at attending at first based on my husband's brief sharing. I will never forget my first attendance. I was completely astounded at what I was witnessing that day during the divine liturgy. I was observing the very thing I had been learning about in divinity school, the eastern church was being 'played out' right in front of me. I immediately knew I was home. Conversion to Orthodoxy after that moment was a no-brainer for me. I quickly found myself in the next catechesis class.
“The time came for me to declare a concentration. I had no idea what concentration to land on. Vanderbilt Divinity had described its Chaplaincy concentration as a focus on holistic, embodied, emotional, and spiritual care which would provide me with practical knowledge to prepare for a vocation in health care. I thought to myself, I can do that because I am already at the bedside. I would go from caring physically for the body to providing spiritual care. It was in my Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) units that I would begin to understand more fully what it meant to provide spiritual care. For my first unit, I worked with those in recovery from various addictions. I am forever indebted to the things that those in recovery taught me about myself and how much resiliency can be found in humankind. I am currently in my second unit of Clinical Pastoral Education at VUMC's newly reinstated ACPE program. Back in a more familiar setting, I find that my patients and their families are still teaching me about myself, and I am learning a lot. Most importantly I am learning what it means to be human with others. I truly have the best of both worlds because some days I am at the bedside as a nurse and other days I am at the bedside as the Chaplain. I find so much joy in going from " doing" to simply "being" with patients and their families in some of their hardest hours.
“In recalling my life's journey from a banker, to nurse, to Orthodoxy, and chaplain I can see where I chose banking as a practical career that would accommodate my children's school schedule. While I chose banking, nursing and chaplaincy chose me. In addition to being chosen for the specific purpose of helping others, Orthodoxy has helped to prepare me for the vocation of chaplaincy in that I have a better understanding of suffering. I find everything about the Orthodox faith to be practically applied to life, especially the Orthodox prayers. As you may imagine, sometimes situations that I have come across at the bedside in either role is perplexing, and I find myself at a loss for words on how to pray. I know that Orthodoxy will have a prayer for me. These prayers could be as simple as the Jesus prayer to more elaborate prayers. At any given time of day or situation, I know that I can refer to my pocket prayer book for Orthodox Christians that will have the words for me to pray. I am thankful for the ease at which prayer can be done in my Orthodox tradition.
“I know that I have been on a journey, not a making of my own, but rather answering a calling. Many days, all I knew was to put one foot in front of the other and to trust the process of the calling. At times, the journey was difficult, time-consuming, costly, and I made sacrifices, but I stayed the course, refused to give up when it got tough and pressed on. I am extremely grateful to the people that have joined me along the journey whether brief or for the duration who have helped me to come into my vocational call to chaplaincy.”
Axia!
Our Woman of the Week is Angela Rios, nominated for her work as a nurse and chaplain. We asked her to tell you how she sees the difference between being a nurse and a chaplain, and how that has affected the way she manages her staff. You see her here in a chapel at Vanderbilt and getting her first COVID vaccination:
“When I think about my role as a nurse and my role as a chaplain, what immediately comes to mind is how one role is more doing and another role is more being. In my experience as a nurse, a twelve-hour shift requires a lot of doing, meaning more task-oriented care for 3-7 patients depending on acuity and patient needs. This does not leave a lot of time for being with patients and attending to their spiritual needs in the nursing role. Task-oriented care also does not allow the patient to express their internal struggles and most times I find that patients work hard to appear brave to the medical team. I am especially grateful to be in the chaplain role and to offer the time that is needed to simply be with patients to express their struggles, challenges, and potential barriers to getting better.
“Another difference in nursing and chaplaincy is in the way time is managed. It has been my experience as a nurse that time is of the essence! I have many tasks to complete in the allotted 12-hour workday. While working as a nurse I need to keep in mind that not only am I working on my time, but I am working with others timing as well. The goal for the day becomes time management. I do not look at this unfavorably or favorably, because good patient care depends on time. If a patient requires a specific medication every 4 hours, then staying on track is very important and results in good care. Chaplaincy is a welcomed release from time constraints while caring for patients. However, admittedly it did take some getting used to. Without the time constraints, Chaplaincy allows me to focus more on being fully present with patients, families, and staff. Attending to spiritual needs is not something that can be rushed and requires a bit of finesse which requires time.
“What I am gaining from my learning while in the Chaplain role is how to transition from a transactional leader to a transformational leader while in the nurse leader role. The one thing that Chaplaincy has afforded me is the ability, through self-reflection, to be more aware of self. Coming into this awareness of self I realized that my leadership style was that I was more of a transactional leader. Resisting the urge to judge myself for this lack of awareness, I embraced the opportunity to be flexible in my leadership style. Implementing small steps such as checking in with staff and practicing mindfulness in morning huddles has helped me to implement charisma and enthusiasm for motivation. I am the byproduct of growing up in the military where transactional leadership is paramount to getting things done. Knowing what I know now I recognize that this type of leadership leaves little room for inspiring others. Additionally, this type of leadership lacks caring for others' feelings and needs. This created turmoil within me because it no longer matches who I am becoming through the Chaplain role.
"Armed with a new sense of awareness and willingness to be flexible I am allowing myself to transition from doing in the transactional leadership role to being in the transformational role. I am a work in progress, however, the responsiveness to this change from staff inspires me to continue making the adjustments needed to lead with compassion and empathy.”
We asked Angela Rios, our Woman of the Week, as usual, about her morning routine. You see her here on vacation in California and with her motorcycle, Ruby, on which she has ridden the Tail of the Dragon in North Carolina, which has 318 curves in just 11 miles of road:
“My morning routine begins with ‘Lord, Jesus Christ Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner,” and the Lord's prayer. Since coming to Orthodoxy I find that prayer has become incredibly easy to incorporate into my day at any time. What I find makes this so easy, as I have mentioned before, is reciting prayers that have been written for specific situations. I can easily refer to prayer when I am at a loss for words when struggling, unsure, or grateful. I have a 45-minute commute to work, and I consider this to be a luxury because, in the quiet space of my car, I can pray for my children, family, friends, patients, staff, and clergy. It is also in this space that I find time for repentance. New to Orthodoxy as I am, repentance has become important to me in recognizing where I have missed the mark and how I might begin again. The time I spend in repentance for me is also a reality check and reminder of my humanity and its struggles which works to keep me connected to other humans. It is on our humanity that I find common ground.
“After my commute, my daily routine varies a bit depending on what role I find myself in for the day. If I am in the Chaplain role, my mentors at VUMC were wise in sharing how they prepare themselves for the day of caring for others and their spiritual needs. One of the ways they prepared was through music. I began joining the M.Div. Staff Chaplain, the Rev. Beth Duke, who is also a talented pianist, in our hospital chapel first thing in the morning for a time of music. The gift of music gives me a time for reflection and gratitude which ushers me into the role of spiritual caregiver. It also serves as a time for centering and being fully present. If I find myself in the nurse leader role, in which I usually have to hit the ground running after my long commute, my routine becomes more about prayer. I will pray throughout the day the Jesus prayer and have been known to set an alarm on my phone to pray every hours (until the alarm went off during a meeting)!
“In either role, during a normal workweek, I spend time in prayer and reflection. It is after the hustle and bustle of the day that I find is my most favorite time of the day, when I come back home and venerate at my prayer wall while burning incense. My most favorite thing about Orthodoxy is the way the tradition engages all the senses. Which for me makes the tradition a living, breathing thing to be appreciated. The Orthodox tradition is not only about a set of beliefs but also about practices that keeps me active in my pursuit of God.”
Thank you, Angela!
