Nursing runs in the family: Long Island RNs celebrate a shared calling
This family’s story unfolds as hospitals nationwide, including those on Long Island, grapple with staffing shortages.
Scrubbing in is the first thing Lisa Coizza, of Massapequa, does every morning of work. After 40 years as a registered nurse, nearly 20 of them spent in the operating room at Huntington Hospital, the routine is second nature.
What’s new is who she now calls a colleague: her son.
“I didn’t think any of my children would follow in my footsteps,” Coizza said.
Her son, Eugene Coizza, credits his mother for setting him on the path.
“My mother suggested I go to work in a hospital as a nurse’s aide and see if I like that,” he said. “And sure enough, I was hooked.”
Eugene is now a registered nurse at South Shore Hospital in Bay Shore. This week, he and his coworkers are being recognized during National Nurses Week, a celebration that has special meaning for his family.
“It’s a nice way to honor my mom, it’s a nice way to honor nursing, and it’s a very happy week for us in our family,” he said.
The Coizza family’s connection to the profession doesn’t end there. More recently, Lisa’s daughter, Kristina, also became a nurse and now works at South Oaks Hospital in Amityville.
“My grandma, I did take care of my mom’s mom, so I had an interest in that,” Kristina Coizza said. “And my grandma always said, ‘Do what your mom did. It was great.’”
The family’s story unfolds as hospitals nationwide, including those on Long Island, grapple with staffing shortages. Despite the challenges, nurses say the profession comes with both rewards and difficulties.
“It’s stable,” Lisa Coizza said. “There will always be a nursing job wherever you go.”
Asked if it’s also rewarding, she didn’t hesitate: “Very rewarding.”
Still, the job has its downsides. Lisa recalls the strain of the pandemic.
“COVID was hard. I never want to go through that again,” she said.
Even so, for Lisa, seeing her children follow in her footsteps brings a deep sense of pride.
“I’m very proud,” she said.
