Reflecting on the 43 years since she became a registered nurse, Debra Abromaitis says nursing was a natural fit for her.
“I enjoy helping people be the best they can be,” she says. “Doing everything I can to help patients get to their highest level of wellness and helping families understand and support their loved ones made nursing a simple choice.”
That philosophy has guided her up through the ranks at UConn Health, and continues to guide her today as an assistant vice president in its Office of Accreditation and Regulatory Affairs, where she’s spent the last five years.
Abromaitis’ time as a UConn nurse goes back to when she worked per diem, primarily in the medical surgical unit, starting in 1991. But her connection to UConn goes back more than a decade earlier, when she was an undergraduate student in Storrs, studying for the nursing degree she’d get in 1981.
We have so many amazing nurses at UConn who do amazing work and deserve to be honored. — Debra Abromaitis
After some time away from UConn in the late 90s that included living overseas while volunteering at the American Hospital in Istanbul, Turkey, she returned to UConn Health, first as a nursing supervisor UConn John Dempsey Hospital (2001 to 2007), then as a staffing and payroll manager (2007 to 2013), director of patient support services (2013-2018), and compliance officer (2018-2019), before joining her current office, which helps prepare accreditations and certifications.
“I educate, guide, advise, support and audit areas to ensure everyone understands the health care regulations, and that we are following the rules to ensure we are all doing the right thing, and I am the first contact when regulatory bodies come for surveys and investigations,” Abromaitis says. “I try to think of how we can improve care to make it better for all. I don’t think of how we can get ready for a survey, I think of how we can get ready for the next patient.”
She’s known for that last statement. She’s also known informally as “The Regulator,” in that she equips UConn Health’s clinical staff with resources to keep current on all regulatory matters and to refer to for timely guidance.
“Deb has made a significant impact on patient care at the bedside and beyond,” according to one of her several nominations for a 2024 Nightingale Award for Excellence in Nursing. “Regardless of her role, her focus has always been to put patients first, and keep them safe. Many of you may carry around the Pocket Guide and not know where this came from.”
The Pocket Guide is one of the tools the Office of Accreditation and Regulatory Affairs created under Abromaitis’ leadership, and is lauded as crucial reference.
Her nominators also recognize Abromaitis for providing emergency guide brochures and a safe evacuation toolbox for each UConn John Dempsey Hospital unit, and backing it up with training and rounding.
“She has left an impact not just on procedure, but also on the people she has mentored and guided,” says another of her nominators. “When faced with a complicated dilemma, we often take a step back and ponder, ‘What would she do in this situation?’”
Caryl Ryan, chief nursing officer and the UConn John Dempsey Hospital chief operating officer and vice president for quality and patient care services, has been at UConn Health since before Abromaitis first arrived.
“Deb Abromaitis is an outstanding nurse and clinical leader,” Ryan says. “Deb really represents the qualities of Florence Nightingale, witnessed by her compassion and dedication to our patients along with her extraordinary focus within patient safety and quality as recognized by her exemplary leadership within our Department of Regulatory and Accreditation.”
Colleagues nominated more than 30 UConn Health registered nurses, nurse practitioners, and nurse anesthetists for 2024 Nightingale Awards.
“I am so very proud of all of the nominees and the Nightingale award winners,” Ryan says. “I thank all of our Nightingales for their dedication to clinical excellence and the patients we serve.”
Abromaitis says she wasn’t expecting this honor, and Ryan surprised her by calling her into the CNO’s office, where Abromaitis’ staff already was in place to hear the news.
“I am so honored and humbled,” Abromaitis says. “We have so many amazing nurses at UConn who do amazing work and deserve to be honored. Florence Nightingale was so hard working, devoted to serving others, she transformed nursing into a respectable profession. To be recognized by those I have worked with, those I have hired, those I have managed for an award in Florence Nightingale’s name… Words cannot express what that means to me.”
