(TAPPAHANNOCK, Va.) – Most of us will never know what it feels like to work for 50 years at the same place. But that is not the case for Linda Clow. September 19, 2022, marked her 50-year anniversary at the same hospital – which today is VCU Health Tappahannock Hospital. Although, when Linda started her job in high school working after school, it was Tidewater Memorial Hospital. Over the decades, she has worked in different departments – from sterile processing, data processing and housekeeping to the pharmacy – and under different hospital ownership, including Riverside Health System and now VCU Health.
Today, Linda is the lead oncology tech in the Pharmacy at VCU Health Tappahannock Hospital. Her dedication to learning and growing has been a constant throughout it all.
“In the pharmacy, you are always learning,” she says. “Your job is never boring.”
One of the most significant changes that Linda has experienced over the years is how technology has become a big part of every aspect of the job. She can remember when everything was handwritten, including patient charts and prescriptions. Today, almost all her work involves a computer.
In her earliest days of sterilizing equipment for different hospital departments and working in the laundry, Linda remembers enjoying the people. “There was a lot of laughter and fun with each day at work,” she recalls.
When Linda worked as a nursing assistant for a few years, she enjoyed being able to interact with patients. But when the hospital opened its first in-house pharmacy, Linda found a work home that would span decades. Her role as a pharmacy tech has evolved over that time and she is proud of the work and its important role in patient care – even if she doesn’t get to interact directly with patients like she used to.
When Linda started in the pharmacy, techs did not even do some of the things that are her favorite job activities today. Putting together rescue squad boxes is a big part of her day. But mixing IVs for oncology treatments is among her favorite work. She loves the technical work, but if she had the chance to interact with the oncology patients, Linda’s message would be: “We’re all doing our best to take care of you.”
If you ask Linda about her most cherished aspect of working for the hospital all these years, her answer is clear: it’s the people.
“I have really enjoyed the people I work with,” she says. “I’ve stayed in touch with so many people even after they have left – they are the best memories.”
Linda says it doesn’t feel like 50 years. And while she doesn’t call attention to her long tenure, she does offer some very sound advice for anyone entering the workforce today: “Learn everything you can and if you can learn more, do it. It will help you do your job better.”
