In the mid-1960s, the idea of having a health clinic within walking distance of urban public housing was completely new. Rush鈥檚 Mile Square Center on Chicago鈥檚 West Side was one of the country鈥檚 first clinics of this type. It was a game changer for people of color. It was also a game changer that Rush hired a young, Black woman to be its director of nursing. Her name was Iris Shannon.
鈥淥h, that鈥檚 the neighborhood nurse.鈥 That鈥檚 what people called Shannon when they saw her in the communities around Presbyterian-St. Luke鈥檚 Hospital (the precursor to 脱衣直播). If they hadn鈥檛 visited Mile Square or been to the hospital to see their doctors and nurses in a while, they鈥檇 soon see Shannon coming to their door. And their doors would always open.
Public health nurses like Shannon are the conduits that bring back to policy makers, health care providers and social services providers what they鈥檝e seen, heard and interpreted on the ground in people鈥檚 homes. They have a long history of being the go-between because the patients 鈥攅specially mothers with babies 鈥 recognize them and trust them.
In the 鈥60s and 鈥70s, when Shannon was making her rounds, Chicago had more than 200 public health nurses. Now we have about 30. Just imagine what a difference seven times as many Iris Shannons might have made making home visits in the communities around Rush when the COVID-19 vaccine became widely available.
Iris Shannon had many titles in her 30 years with Rush. She was a trailblazer in urban planning and policy. She served as president of the prestigious American Public Health Association, and she was a leader in the launch of the Rush Home Health Service in 1975.
I met Shannon when I was a student at Rush. I was so inspired by the energy and passion she brought to her work life. Little did I know then that my career path would travel similar ground as hers 鈥 but only because she paved it for me and many others.
I talked with Shannon when I started this reflection (she鈥檚 in her 90s now), and we had a wonderful time looking back but also looking forward. She has so much wisdom and optimism to share. I鈥檓 quite sure she still holds the title of the neighborhood nurse among her friends and neighbors, and she鈥檚 not done making a difference. She told me we still have a lot of work to do. Yes, we do.
