Millennium Magazine_6th Ed

309 Millennium - A Marquis Who’s Who Magazine FLORENCE RIGNEY NURSE Tacoma General Hospital Tacoma, WA General School of Nursing, going against her father’s wishes to attend business school. She recalls her tuition being around $175. Ms. Rigney has worked as a nurse for more than 70 years, and currently works part-time at Tacoma General Hospital in Washington State. She has also been a nurse at the Memorial Baptist Hospital in Cheyenne, Wyoming (now known as the Cheyenne Regional Medical Center), the Georgia Baptist Hospital in Atlanta, Georgia (now known as the WellStar Atlanta Medical Center), and the Nix Hospital in surgery in San Antonio, Texas. One of Ms. Rigney’s first nursing positions was as a nurse cadet when the United States entered World War II in 1943. The hospital where she worked transitioned to the Cadet’s Nursing Program and she, alongside her fellow student nurses, were able to contribute to serving the country. When Ms. Rigney started nursing, penicillin had just been introduced. The biggest change she has seen, aside fromobvious medical innovations, is the duration of patient stays. She says patients would stay for 10 days or longer in the hospital after surgery, but now most people go home in about one or two days. Ms. Rigney is a member of the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses and the American Nurses Association. She has notably been featured by numerous news outlets for her exceptional story, including “Nightly News” with Lester Holt on NBC News and the “Dr. Oz Show.” Ms. Rigney attributes her success to the love of her profession and her willingness to learn. Looking ahead, Ms. Rigney plans to enjoy the rest of her remaining years of good health by possibly doing some volunteer work. Married with one daughter, three grandchildren and one great-grandchild, Ms. Rigney is excep- tionally proud of her career path and hopes to serve as an inspiration for future nurses to come. A s the United States’ oldest working registered nurse at 94 years old, Florence Rigney is renowned for her dedication and passion to nursing. Ms. Rigney knew she wanted to be a nurse since the age of 6 when she had amastoidectomy, in which she grew a deep appreciation for nurses. In 1946, she graduated from the Tacoma SCIENCES, PHARMACEUTICALS AND BIOTECHNOLOGY