Editor's Note: National Nurses’ Week is an annual celebration of nurses worldwide for the work they do for others. This week allows people the chance to acknowledge the nurses in their lives. It also provides an opportunity to thank nurses within the industry as a whole for the work they’ve done. Lindsey Bjork was featured in a special salute in the printed edition of the Echo Press.

ALEXANDRIA – Lindsey Bjork, a registered nurse and mom of three, grew up in Amery, Wisconsin, but now lives in Alexandria.
Bjork began her career in the medical field working as a medical assistant in 2004. In 2012 – right after having her twins – she decided to further her education and earned her Registered Nursing degree at Anoka Ramsey Community College in Cambridge. She graduated in 2015 and started her nursing career in St. Croix Falls, Wisconsin, at the St. Croix Regional Medical Center working in triage and cardiac stress testing.
In August 2019, she and her husband, Ryan, and their three children, moved to Alexandria. Three months later, she began working at Bethany on the Lake.
As a family they love to go camping, ice fishing, four-wheeling and antiquing. Bjork’s love for antiquing comes from growing up in a train station that was built in 1887 in Amery. The town was going to tear it down, but her parents wanted to keep that piece of history alive, so they purchased the train station, moved it to the outskirts of town and restored it into a home. Over the years they filled it with antiques from many different eras and her parents still live there today.
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Now, she and her kids – 11-year-old twins (one boy and one girl) and 14-year-son – enjoy antiquing together and her youngest son really inherited her love for the hobby.
Bjork chose a career in nursing because she wanted to help people in a time of need who required more assistance, understanding or education on their health and needs.
“Starting as a medical assistant, I knew I wanted to grow my career and have more responsibility and ability to provide care,” said Bjork.
One of the most rewarding aspects of her job is advocating for her patients’ needs. Being able to meet their needs in a vulnerable time and working together as a team with them is what makes it rewarding, she said.
“At Bethany, the highlight is seeing patients meet their goals and be more independent, living their best life,” she said, adding, “Time management and being able to meet all needs of each resident throughout the day up to my standards can be challenging.”
She also noted that developing a plan for the day and being able to take a deep breath and change course when obstacles arise can also be challenging at times.
For those who are thinking of going into nursing, Bjork offered some advice. She said to ask questions to build your confidence. Be flexible. Know that nursing is open-ended and that a career in nursing can lead to so many different paths – whether it is hands-on in a hospital, nursing home or someone’s home, or in management, IT or behind the scenes, options are there.
When asked to share a fun fact about nursing, Bjork said, “You make more peanut butter and jelly sandwiches than you ever would have thought. It’s not only taking care of the medical needs such as medications and treatments, but it is also taking care of the person as a whole!”