Two Queens nurses share insight on providing
critical care during the COVID-19 pandemic
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
When Oksana Galivova
isn’t at Jamaica Hospital taking
care of sick patients and
leading her team of nurses to
provide the best quality care,
she dedicates her time and
love to her family who gave
her support throughout her
career as a nurse, keeping
her strong and motivated.
Galivova, who immigrated
from Russia to the U.S. in
1995 and resides in Rego Park,
comes from a family with a
broad history of healthcare
professionals in the medical
field who inspired her to become
a nurse, she said.
“When I was a little girl, I
remember sitting at a dinner
table and listening to them
talk about patients they have
seen and the impact they had
on them for them to get better,”
said Galivova, a clinical
nurse manager for the medical
surgical unit at Jamaica
Hospital.
Galivova started her nursing
career in Russia and
when she came to the U.S.,
she attended the Hunter-
Bellevue School of Nursing
at Hunter College, where she
obtained a bachelor of arts
degree and a master of arts
degree in nursing. She joined
Jamaica Hospital in 2000
working in the telemetry unit
as a staff nurse and was then
promoted to assistant head
nurse, where her passion became
stronger in mentoring
and teaching new nurses. In
2010, Galivova was promoted
to clinical nurse manager of
the medical-surgical unit.
“This has been an amazing
experience to be a role model
for newly hired nursing staff
to be at a patient’s bedside,”
Galivova said. “I love to advocate,
comfort them, and to
make sure they get the best
quality care. When I see my
nurses doing the best job
ever, and coming to me saying,
‘I learned this from you’
or ‘This is the best experience
working with you Oksana’
that makes me very happy.’”
Galivova has always loved
helping and taking care
of people, especially when
they’re sick, she said. In her
21-year career as a nurse,
she strives to go above and
Oksana Galivova, clinical nurse manager, Med/Surg Unit Jamaica Hospital, and John Hartin, a nurse at Flushing Hospital.
beyond in her profession caring
for patients the way she
would want her family members
to be cared for.
“When patients go home
and they look at your eyes
and say ‘thank you’ when
they get better, and when
their families are reaching
out to you and sending cards,
I feel like my job has been accomplished
when I see those
things,” Galivova said.
Galivova is honored to lead
a team of nurses, she said, admiring
their sacrifices each
and every day, especially during
the COVID-19 pandemic,
which has changed the face
of her career.
As one of her patients was
deteriorating from the coronavirus,
Galivova recalled
speaking to his mother over
the phone providing updates,
but unfortunately, he did not
make it, she said.
“One of the hardest things
was to speak to his mom after
he died. This was one of the
most difficult times when
families weren’t able to be at
the patient’s bedside and see
what they’re going through,”
Galivova said.
As Galivova reflects on
the past year that was filled
with challenges, heartache
TIMESLEDGER | Q 24 NS.COM | MAY 7-MAY 13, 2021
and lost lives, she remains
hopeful that that pandemic
will be over one day.
“Everyday I come to work
and I see our census is dropping
— we have 39 bed units
and 11 patients are in the
ward,” Galivova said. “It
makes me feel so good and
hopeful that we are discharging
them, and educating them
about proper hygiene and
making sure they go home
with oxygen, if needed.”
Like Galivova, John Hartin,
a nurse at Flushing Hospital
for the past 34 and a half
years, expressed appreciation
for his team helping to save
lives during the pandemic
that ravaged the borough.
“I was never sick, thank
God. I still think back and say
to my coworkers, considering
what we worked through, we
survived,” Hartin said. “If
it weren’t for teamwork, we
might not have been where
we are today.”
A Queens native, Hartin
was born and raised in Bellerose.
He began working as
a nurses aide in the critical
care unit (ICU) at the former
Deepdale Hospital in Little
Neck, before he attended
Queensborough Community
College and obtained an associates
degree in nursing.
“Nursing has always been a
great career for me. There are
so many avenues you can work
in and I love it,” said Hartin,
whose wife and daughter are
also medical professionals. “I
would never discourage anyone
from not going into it. If
you like taking care of people
and meeting people, that’s the
way to go.”
Upon graduating from
QCC, Hartin continued working
in the ICU taking on
Flushing Hospital’s critical
care patients — whether they
came from the emergency
room or floor.
“We’ve seen it all the time,
especially with COVID. You
can be talking to someone
at one minute, and the next
minute they are in a different
place, unstable,” Hartin said.
“People do well, and, sometimes,
they don’t do well.”
At the height of the pandemic,
Hartin and his team
didn’t know what they were
dealing with, he said.
“A lot of the times we
didn’t get breaks — there
was no leaving the bedside.
People were just so sick, and
patient care comes first,”
Hartin said.
According to Hartin,
Photos courtesy of Galivova and Hartin
there are both good and bad
outcomes in the ER.While
caring for a coronavirus patient
on a respirator, Hartin
held her hand, reassuring
her they will do everything
they can.
“I came back a few days
later and she was gone,” Hartin
said. “I took care of a lot of
COVID patients — both young
and old — holding hands and
making eye contact, and days
later they’re gone. COVID
was sad and it was a very
vulnerable disease,” Hartin
said.
Looking ahead, as people
continue to get vaccinated
pushing back against the virus,
Hartin said people still
need to be smart and safe,
especially if they’re going
through a crowded area.
“We were on the front
lines, but you also had the
fire department and police
department, everyone who
came in contact with the public
and played a role,” Hartin
said. “Everyone was able to
step up and get where we are
today.”
Reach reporter Carlotta
Mohamed by e-mail at cmohamed@
schnepsmedia.com or
by phone at (718) 260–4526.
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