Senior Vice President, Managing Director
University Hospital of Brooklyn
Growing up, Patricia A. Winston found a role model in her mother, a nurse who cared for each of her three daughters “in the way that we each uniquely needed to be cared for,” and took the same caring to work. “My mother loved being a nurse. Even when she retired, she worked in a nursing home,” Winston remarks.
Recently named Senior Vice President, Managing Director at University Hospital of Brooklyn after serving as vice president, chief administrative officer and chief operating officer, Winston is certain that she, too, chose the right profession. “I got from my mother that taking care of others meant you cared,” she affirms. “People trust nurses; it’s our responsibility to meet and exceed their expectations. It’s about having a kind spirit and connecting with patients.” Winston has much practice in this regard. “I’ve been on every rung of the nursing hierarchy: as a staff nurse, head nurse, and nurse supervisor,” she notes. “I’ve also seen a lot, from discrepancies to discrimination, and I’ve always been determined to do it better.”
A registered nurse with bachelors’ in professional arts and nursing from Wilmington College and a master’s in healthcare administration from West Chester University, Winston is pursuing a doctorate in nursing practice at George Washington University. She participates in nursing-related organizations, such as the National Association of Health Services Executives, as well as nursing-related committees and panel discussions.
She reflects on how far she has come since her junior high school guidance counselor told her that she would never get into college and suggested she take business courses and get a job. “I continued my education, became a nurse, raised my children and, years later, talked on a panel at the University of Delaware about what nurses need in the workforce,” she asserts. “I saw his comments as a challenge, and everything turned out okay.”
