Beth Clark’s Journey to Children’s of Alabama

Beth Clark has been in the medical field since 1995. Today, she holds a position as the Children’s of Alabama Director of Care Coordination. Beth had a unique journey to this role with Children’s of Alabama, as she worked within our hospital earlier in her career, left for a time, and then returned.

“My first job was a night shift nurse in an adult care setting. About a year into that job I was offered an opportunity to come to work at Children’s of Alabama to help open up the Pediatric Health Information Line, which is now known as Telephone Triage. I had the privilege of working for Dr. William King (or Billy, as we called him), along with the staff of the Regional Poison Control Center. Dr. King was a great mentor and just recently retired from Children’s. I credit him for encouraging me to further my education by getting my MBA since I had an interest in the business side of healthcare. After working the night shift for three years, I started searching for something with more normal hours. That is when I left Children’s and gained experience in the nursing administration field and insurance industry.”

Beth had the opportunity to move into the new career avenue of nursing administration at a local hospital where she worked for the next seven years. During this time, she gained invaluable experience with hospital administration, finance, staffing, quality, regulation and compliance issues, etc. After those seven years, she went into the insurance world, but she always had the desire to go back into a hospital setting.

Today, she calls Children’s of Alabama home. Children’s is the place she always knew she would end up.  Beth has flourished and grown in her career at Children’s.

Growing at Children’s of Alabama

I have seen Children’s of Alabama really step up their efforts to ensure that we provide safe, quality care to our patients. We’ve done this by supporting participation in performance improvement initiatives with other pediatric hospitals, such as practice development and reporting of comparison data.

The New Hire Experience

My new hire experience was absolutely amazing! It was the most organized and structured I have seen. Prior to arriving my first day, I had clear instructions on what to expect. It was the most welcoming environment, and that assured me that coming here was the right choice.

One Team, One Culture

The people that work at Children’s are very special and have a gift of love for children and others. You can see that in their faces when you pass them in the halls or meet them in the cafeteria.  They are dedicated to the entire family and will stop at nothing to provide for the needs of our patient population.

The best way I have described the culture to others is that it is like working at Disney World.  It doesn’t seem to be a job, but instead a calling to do something you love to do every day. The organization really does care about its employees as much as it does the patients.  People’s voices are heard and given fair consideration. 

What Makes Children’s Stand Out

Again, Children’s is like a Disney World culture, even in the day-to-day duties. Each holiday season brings special events to the hospital where you can witness the love and attention that goes into planning the tree display or Santa pictures.  I see the excitement and satisfaction in the staff’s eyes as they are able to make kids happy by providing them gifts while they are hospitalized during Christmas, or toys at Halloween.

Building Teams

Being able to build an effective team based on placing people in areas that showcase their strengths has been a highlight for me while working here.  It wasn’t without adversity that it was accomplished, but it’s been very much a worthwhile project. Mentoring others to be the best they can be is what I really enjoy doing.

The Children’s Family

I feel like Children’s chose me as much as I chose it. From the minute I walked in for an interview I felt at home and welcomed, so I knew it was meant for me. The people and the environment here are so warm, friendly, open and honest.  When you feel as though you are valued, not just for your skills and abilities but also as an individual, you want to become a part of that team.

If you are ready to join an organization dedicated to its people, see how our culture comes to life when you apply today.