Dearborn, MI (PRWEB) July 24, 2013 -- Oakwood nurse Trina Miller, 47, of Grosse Ile and six of her nursing colleagues have been on a year-long weight loss mission to transform their lives and improve their overall health and wellness – on center stage – on national television. Last night’s episode of ABC’s Extreme Weight Loss with host Chris Powell featured “Team Trina” on their quest to become healthier and stronger for themselves, their families and the patients they care for on a daily basis.
“Nursing is one of the most respected and trusted professions in the country,” said Barb Medvec, senior vice president and chief nursing officer, Oakwood Healthcare. “It is also one in which we put the needs of patients, colleagues and families ahead of our own. I am proud of the accomplishments that Team Trina has achieved over the past year and their continuing commitment to inspire others to live well.”
Miller was joined by six other Oakwood Healthcare colleagues:
Jamie Fineran, RN, 36, of Westland
Ebony Gibson, RN, 39, of Romulus
Lisa Rigney, RN, 47, of Southgate
Kristin Quint, RN, 32, of Garden City
Victoria Schell, RN, 53, of Ypsilanti
Wynema Timmons, LPN, 56, of Southgate
The team’s success was a result of personal motivation, team support, improved nutrition, frequent exercise and the many services provided by Oakwood’s employee health and wellness program.
“While the Extreme Weight Loss program provided inspiration for these remarkable nurses, Oakwood’s workplace wellness program provided them vital support,” said Brian Connolly, president and CEO, Oakwood Healthcare. “For these nurses to have lost the amount of weight they lost and to have undergone these dramatic changes in their lifestyle – they’re incredible. Even more importantly, they are great role models for all of us including their patients. They give us hope that if they can do it, we can do it as well.”
Miller, who lost a total of 145 pounds over the course of the year, is a mother of three teenage children. She and her husband Erick also help care for her elderly mother. She attended an open casting call for the ABC program in February 2012. She was selected from thousands of applicants and learned she and her team would officially be a part of the cast one month later. Traditionally a show that features one person per episode, the producers were intrigued with the idea of health care workers overlooking their own health and wellness to care for others.
“I’ve been overweight my entire life,” said Miller. “I’ve always turned to food to cope with stress. Doing this with my friends and having the help and support from Chris Powell and Oakwood has really made this just an amazing experience for me and my family.”
While working in different Oakwood facilities, the team stayed motivated and inspired each other through daily text messages and frequent workout sessions. Kristin Quint, a clinical manager at Oakwood Annapolis Hospital in Wayne who is also currently pursuing a Master’s degree, often led daily inspirational text messages for the group and helped keep the communication flowing among the entire team.
“This experience has taught me so much,” said Quint. “I’ve lost a total of 87 pounds and along the way, I’ve learned how to balance work, school and family and still find time to work out, eat right and help inspire my friends, colleagues and patients.”
In total, Trina’s team lost a combined 508 pounds and gained a whole host of benefits as a result.
“This experience has changed my life in so many ways,” said Miller. “On this journey, I have met some incredible nurses and now they’re my friends for life. We’re doing this together and I can’t tell you how important it is and how much it means to me to have them with me and inspiring me every day,” she added. “Anyone who wants to get healthy should make use of every tool available, and your friends can be a big part of that. My own journey was extreme and I don’t know if I would have made it without the support of my team.”
To follow Team Trina’s ongoing success and learn more about how to begin a health makeover of your own, visit http://www.oakwood.org/healthmakeover.
About Oakwood Healthcare System:
Founded in 1953 and headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, Oakwood Healthcare System is a comprehensive regional healthcare network that serves residents over a 500 square mile area. Comprised of four acute care hospitals, 45 primary and specialty care sites and four centers of excellence, Oakwood provides services to more than one million people in 35 communities. As the second largest employer in suburban Wayne County, Oakwood is home to more than 9,000 employees and 1,300 physicians representing nearly every medical and surgical specialty and subspecialty. Oakwood has been recognized as one of the nation’s top 100 Integrated Healthcare Networks, one of Metro Detroit’s Best and Brightest Companies to Work For, and a finalist for the 2011 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. For more information about Oakwood, visit http://www.oakwood.org.
Paula Rivera-Kerr, Oakwood Healthcare, Inc., http://www.oakwood.org, 313-791-4817, [email protected]
Share this article