2017 Gold Medalist – Nursing Administration and Leadership

Alice Kohler, MSN, RN, CCRN, CPAN, NE-BC, Ben Taub Hospital

For as long as she can remember, Alice Kohler wanted to be a nurse. “It just came naturally to me,” she says. “Growing up, I took care of my brothers and sisters, and any stray animal we found came home with us. So nursing is just part of who I am.”

A native of Covington, Georgia, Alice moved to Houston five years ago and went to work for Harris Health System. Today, with 21 years of nursing behind her, she directs six perioperative departments at Ben Taub Hospital with limitless compassion.

“Our patients bring out the best in me because many of them face the same challenges my own family faced,” she says. “I was a country girl from a poor family. There were eight children, and when we were sick, my family had a hard time getting us care. The patients we see here at Ben Taub are scared of the surgery, they’re scared of the outcome of the surgery, and they’re scared of the financial impact it will have on their families. When we see them, they’re not at their best, and it’s our job to give them the compassion, understanding, and respect they need to get through it. Every time we get one person through this process, I feel like we’ve accomplished something very important. I work with the most exceptional people you could possibly imagine. All the way from our CNO to the people I work side by side with every day – they’re inspirational. They meet the challenges of our population with smiles on their faces, and they expect nothing less from everyone else.”

Known for her transformational, service-oriented leadership style, Alice is a team-builder. She helps her staff solve problems, is quick to include them in day-to-day operational decision-making, and she leads by example.

“Alice Kohler is one of those rare individuals who believes that we are all here on this earth to serve others,” wrote her nominator, Dwayne Patzold. “She is the kindest, most compassionate, and caring person I have had the pleasure to meet, and she happens to be a nurse. She has an open heart for everyone and is always on the lookout for someone in need. She has an uncompromising commitment to service and finds joy in acts of giving. Her daily actions demonstrate how much she cares about people, and it carries over to her patients, the visitors, and the staff at Ben Taub Hospital. She makes rounds multiple times a day in each unit, talking to staff about what’s new in the organization, what they do well, where they see areas for potential improvement, what changes are needed, and how to implement these changes from the nurse clinician’s perspective.”

At the beginning of her career, Alice was unsure about her leadership skills. After completing her associate’s degree in nursing at Dekalb College in Georgia, on a hospital scholarship, she went to work. “I got in there and after a while my boss said, ‘Alice, I think you’d be a very good charge nurse,’” she recalls. “I was hesitant because I didn’t think leadership was for me.”

But within two years, her manager had retired and Alice stepped into her position. She went on to earn her BSN at Clayton State University in Morrow, Georgia, and her MSN at the University of South Alabama in Mobile.

Known for lending a helping hand whenever it’s needed, Alice’s most recent endeavor was organizing a free CPR training course at a nearby RV park serving out-of-town visitors to the Texas Medical Center. “The majority of the park’s residents are in Houston for medical treatment or are visiting a hospitalized family member,” wrote Dwayne in his nomination. “Alice has been an ACLS/BLS instructor for many years, donating her time while Harris Health System supplies the equipment and cards for CPR training classes. She felt that the training would give people in the RV park a feeling of confidence and control in a situation that can feel utterly out of control. She gives a gift that is more valuable and needed than any other: HOPE!”

Alice was named among the Houston Chronicle’s Top 150 Nurses in Houston in 2016 and 2017. Always moving forward, she started work on her Doctor of Nursing Practice in August. “There’s so much more to learn out there,” she says.

Ask Alice about lessons learned and she’ll tell you never to accept the ordinary. “We go beyond here at Ben Taub because we know our population needs us. If anyone’s having a tough day, we lean on each other for support. My advice to everyone, especially new nurses, is to embrace change. It will continue to come, and life is so much simpler if you just go for it.”