Team members at Riverside Tappahannock Hospital are looking forward to welcoming their new administrator, former HCA Virginia Vice President, Esther Desimini, and she is equally excited about her new role.
"What interested me most was the commitment everyone at this hospital has to doing the right thing for the health of the community. And I saw that level of concern and commitment extended to one another here at the hospital," Desimini said.?
Desimini began her career in nursing and knew from the beginning she wanted to work with cancer patients, not just for the clinical aspect, but the human touch as well.
"There is something about cancer patients and their willingness to lift up those around them--to be concerned with others' distress all while dealing with their own. That motivated me to try and make a difference for them at the most difficult time in their lives."
After receiving both nursing and master's degrees, she specialized in oncology at both Johns Hopkins and Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, developing treatment and support programs for bone marrow transplant patients.
Desimini moved to Virginia in 1992, continuing her nursing practice in oncology as well as becoming Assistant Professor of Nursing at the University of Virginia. She also began her own practice, Lymphedema Therapies, focused on symptom management of cancer survivors.
Desimini joined HCA in 2004, first as hospital administrator at Henrico Doctor's Hospital in Richmond, then as Vice President of their Central Virginia Market. While her scope became much broader, she continued to create programs related to cancer;developing a Breast Care Network, nurse navigation, and disease specific programs within an Oncology Network across the four HCA hospitals in Central Virginia.
It was in this role that Desimini first came to know Riverside Tappahannock Hospital.
"HCA and Riverside Tappahannock Hospital partnered to develop a lung cancer screening program that would allow patients to receive as much diagnostics and care as possible close to home, while taking advantage of the oncology specialists and support resources in Richmond," Desimini said.
"I was so impressed with how committed everyone was to delivering the best possible care here in the community," she added.
Now that she will be at RTH full-time, what is she most looking forward to? It goes back to community.
"I'm really looking forward to working with the dedicated staff of the hospital and the community that we serve. There's such a commitment on both sides to wanting this hospital to succeed."
Desimini will also play a significant role in working collaboratively with all the Riverside Medical Group providers in the area which include urgent care, five primary care and six specialty practices;independent physicians, and the affiliated Richmond physicians who provide specialty care in partnership with Riverside Tappahannock Hospital in the local community.
Outside of work, Desimini loves to cook, especially for her family. She and her husband have three college-aged children and recently purchased a home in Tappahannock.