Spotlight on Catonia Williams
#WeAreCookChildrens
We all know everyone sees the world differently. That is the reason Catonia Williams, LVN, approaches care from different angles—listening, connecting and building trust—to support her patients and community to the best of her ability.
As an LVN in pediatric urology, Catonia provides support to physicians and nurse practitioners while administering high quality care according to each patient’s needs. She proves that when it comes to providing health care, Cook Children’s Medical Center employees are with their patients every inch of the way.
Having spent more than 14 years at Cook Children’s, Catonia understands the most effective way to support others is to put herself in their shoes and see the world through their eyes.
“Children are curious individuals, especially the younger ones,” she says. “They will have multiple questions that you have to be prepared to answer.”
The first step to providing the highest quality care, Catonia says, is to gain a child’s trust.
“To do that, you sometimes have to physically get down to their eye level and not tower over them,” she says. “When they come to the clinic, there may be a fear of what is going to happen, but you can give them a sense of comfort by showing them you understand their needs and you are here to help.”
Doing so led to one of Catonia’s favorite memories working at Cook Children’s.
During a visit with a patient with special needs, she took the time to comfort him and earn his trust, which allowed her to take his vitals and give him injections. Since then, the patient and his mother have looked for Catonia upon arrival for each visit to Cook Children’s.
Catonia’s art of caring brings joy to not only the patients and their families during visits but also to Catonia herself.
“Every day that I care for a patient is my best day at Cook Children’s,” she says. “I have a special bond with children. They can win me over anytime.”
One could attribute Catonia’s supportive character to her upbringing. She says her hero is her mother, Edna, a single woman who raised four children while going to school.
“My mother has always instilled in me that I can do whatever I put my mind to,” she says. “She is my biggest motivator and because of her, I strive to be and do my best in all that I do.”
Catonia’s ability to comfort and support others is an example of why we are proud to proclaim #WeAreCookChildrens.
The World Health Organization (WHO) extended the Year of the Nurse into 2021 and the past year brought even more challenges for our staff to overcome.
As the pandemic proved relentless, the nurses at Cook Children’s proved resilient. They faced ever-changing pandemic processes with strength and courage and remained dedicated to providing the highest quality care despite ongoing adversity.
Highlights of the 2021 Nursing Annual Report include:
- Becoming the first freestanding pediatric hospital in North Texas, and 10th in the world, to receive the prestigious Magnet designation four consecutive times
- Making history with the COVID-19 vaccine;
- Being the only pediatric hospital in Texas to receive the coveted Lantern Award from the Emergency Nurses Association (ENA);
- Working to remove the stigma of mental health care; and so much more!