Bonnie Riekenberg recently retired from nursing after over 46 years. She has worked at the Beatrice Community Hospital for over 44 years.
Inspired by her sister, Linda Ament, she decided on a career in nursing early in her life.
“I always looked up to her and basically wanted to follow in her footsteps,” Riekenberg said. “I was just kind of tunnel visioned because I kind of knew what I wanted to do.”
She grew up and graduated from high school in Beatrice. She had worked at the Lutheran Hospital as a nurse’s aide when she was in high school on summers and weekends.
After graduating from the University of Nebraska Medical Center as a registered nurse, Riekenberg worked at the Lutheran Hospital until shortly before it closed. She started at Beatrice Community Hospital as a night house supervisor.
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“I worked in different areas, but then a position came open in the OR. I was offered the position, and I was very honest and told them that I liked floor nursing and if a day position came open on the floor, I would probably apply for it. I agreed to stay in the OR for at least six months, but I fell in love with it. I enjoyed what I did. I enjoyed the people I worked with, and that is where I spent the majority of my career,” she said.
She said she liked that no two days were ever the same. She outlined some of the biggest changes over the years.
“There was so much to learn. And the ever-changing processes and environment. Big technology just changes so quickly. I embraced the challenges of those changes and I really enjoyed that,” she said.
Riekenberg said when she first started with open incisions and then learned laparoscopic procedures and then robotically. She noted that her favorite procedure was probably total joints.
“There’s a lot of pieces and part to the equipment that you use and put together. It’s very methodical. I also enjoyed C-sections and just the miracle of life is very special. Surgery has the ability to make a difference in somebody’s life pretty quickly. Knowing that you were a part of being able to help the surgeons and doing their job to help patients feel better and seeing those results,” she said.
She said she couldn’t say enough positive things about the operating room staff.
“They do the right things for the right reasons. They know why they’re doing what they’re doing. They’re excellent at what they do. I feel like the Beatrice Community Hospital offers fantastic care from administration to front-line staff. They definitely have the patient’s best interests at heart and want to be sure that we have the best outcomes possible. So the confidence that the community can have in the care that they’re going to receive at BCH should be very high,” she said.
Riekenberg still works on occasion as PRN (short for "pro re nata" in Latan — "as needed") staff.
“So, when they need help and if it works in my schedule, I can pop in and work,” she said.
Since retiring, she said she is enjoying spending time with her two children and a niece whose children she counts among her eight grandchildren.
“I have the opportunity to be able to spend the time and just do the things that I can to help our family. Just spend time with grandkids because they grow up so very quickly. I like gardening. It used to be that you fit those things in after work when you are already exhausted. I’m finding it very enjoyable to just be able to do those things that I love and dedicate some time to it,” she said.
