Proudly Saluting Pennsy’s Veterans and Service Members

Last month, Penn Medicine’s Veterans Care Excellence Program (VCEP) hosted a Veterans of Care Celebration to honor the faculty and staff across the health system who are veterans of the armed forces or who continue to serve in the National Guard or Reserve. Pennsylvania Hospital — which has been involved in every war in which our country has participated — is proud to be home to so many of these employees. Here are some of their stories:

A Gateway into Medicine

Pete Schiavo entered the U.S. Navy right after high school, and his six years in the military were largely spent aboard the Dwight D. Eisenhower aircraft carrier. For Schiavo, serving his country was the greatest privilege, even when training in alligator-infested swamps, and he rose through the ranks to petty officer second class. But when reflecting on his service, it isn’t experiences like sailing five of the seven seas or crossing the equator that make him emotional — it’s the fact that he continues to serve by caring for his “brothers and sisters.”

As a hemostasis tech, Schiavo applies pressure to patients’ groins to aid in clotting, which affords him a chance to get to know them quite well. “That secret clearance in the Navy never goes away — whatever we talk about during those 30 minutes, I’ll take to my grave!” he said, laughing. “But it’s my duty to do whatever I can for every patient, and I especially take that to heart when a veteran comes in.”

Like Schiavo, Kemeshia Greene, MSN, RN, an Infusion Services nurse, also joined the military straight out of high school. During her 19 years in the U.S. Air National Guard, she was deployed to Afghanistan and Germany and earned her nursing degree. Now a captain and a flight nurse, she regularly goes on missions to transport patients back to the United States from places like Kuwait, Qatar, Okinawa, and South Korea.

Though these patients are often stable and facing different challenges than her infusion patients, her ability to quickly assess situations and be receptive to their unique needs ensures that she’s never out of practice. She remains on active duty and is proud to utilize her skills in so many arenas. “It’s also great to have the full support of my supervisor and coworkers behind me,” she said. “Sometimes I have to leave on short notice or for weeks at a time, but I know that when I come back, it will be like I never left.”

Duty and Discipline

“I’m a good shot, and I know how to set a claymore mine, but the skill that carried over is discipline. It really is everything,” said carpenter Angelo Broglin, who served in the U.S. Marine Corps until 1970 and spent 13 months in Vietnam. His unimpeachable sense of duty and commitment to getting the job done helped him rise to become a platoon sergeant.

Broglin’s fellow Engineering Services team member Brian Lynch agrees. He spent seven years in the U.S. Army as an infantry team leader. For a year, he and his unit served as the “second speed bump division” in South Korea; he was even there when North Korea launched its first ballistic missile. While he notes that the military “definitely challenges you and requires mental toughness,” he enjoyed his time in the service because he was able to meet people from all over the world. When he joined Penn as a locksmith, he found the structure of a large organization familiar, and he continues to pursue similar goals.

“I want to do my job to the best of my ability, treat my teammates and ‘commanders’ with professionalism and respect, and be self-motivated and resourceful when I’m prioritizing my responsibilities. There’s only one of me, so it takes discipline,” Lynch said.

Seeing the Ripple Effects

Kristen Deis, MSN, RN, CEN, assistant nurse manager for the ED, is a newer addition to the military, after joining the U.S. Air Force Reserve two years ago. Though she had considered joining after graduation, she decided to first pursue her master’s degree. She notes that taking her time forced her to be fully confident in her decision and goals. Deis serves as a registered nurse in a unit that is designed to be sent wherever emergency medical care is needed within 72 hours. Consistent training is her unit’s main focus.

“Earlier this spring, I was on a two-week training mission in Mississippi for a chemical warfare exercise, and a few weeks ago, I was called away for my firearm qualification,” she said. But like Greene, Deis has an encouraging team of colleagues supporting her (and laughing when she returns from training with “ma’am” and “sir” added to her vocabulary). “I just feel very privileged to be able to pursue more than one dream and to be supported by Penn from day one,” she said.

Coincidentally, Jack Sariego, MD, MBA, FACS, CPE, vice president for Perioperative Services, was in the same unit as Deis previously. Sariego joined the U.S. Air Force Reserve in 2000. Just a few months later, after September 11, 2001, it became clear that as a “triple threat” — a trauma surgeon, flight surgeon, and critical care specialist — he would be deployed. He was the first reserve physician from his wing to serve in combat, and he spent nine months in Afghanistan, followed by four months in Europe and Southwest Asia.

He continued as a reservist, rose to the rank of colonel, and ended his military career as commander of the Aeromedical Staging Squadron at McGuire Air Force Base. After 19 years, his focus is now on bringing that same dedication to PAH. “The sense of doing something important, something that couldn’t or shouldn’t be passed off to someone else, has stayed with me,” he said. “And now I am in the position to support my fellow veterans as a member of the executive council for VCEP. Penn Medicine is the most supportive organization for veterans that I’ve ever been a part of, and it doesn’t go unnoticed by our patients or huge cadre of vet employees. Penn’s commitment is extraordinary, and I’m proud to be a part of it.”