A Teacher at Heart
Heart disease runs in Kim’s family. When she lost both parents, she made it her mission to share her knowledge about cardiac monitoring with technicians and clinicians to identify potential issues early.
What is your role at Baxter?
Kim: I am one of three associate directors of Clinical Services in Baxter’s Ambulatory Cardiac Monitoring business. I live in Sussex County, NJ, with my husband and 3 kids.
What inspired you to work in this industry?
Kim: Heart disease is a leading cause of death in the United States1. I lost both parents to cardiac disease — they were only in their 50s. My family also has a history of Afib, stroke and diabetes. Learning about the heart and establishing a career in reading heart rhythms to help catch disease early became my passion.
How did you get started?
Kim: I began my career as a medical assistant and surgical technician in the early 2000s. In 2008, I began analyzing heart rhythms for a cardiology products company. There I discovered my second passion: teaching. In my schooling to become a medical assistant, I learned about the electrocardiogram (ECG) process, such as how to place the monitor, patient care and troubleshooting, but I did not learn how to read results. As I became more experienced in analyzing heart rhythm patterns in my job, I wanted to share my knowledge with others.
When I joined Bardy Diagnostics2 (now part of Baxter) in 2017 as a clinical services manager, my two passions came together. I jumped at the chance to teach a cardiac monitoring class at a local community college. Later, I taught an ECG technician training course at the Bardy office in New Jersey in 2020. This served as a training ground for future ECG technicians at Bardy. Students who finished the course and passed the exam had the opportunity to apply for ECG technician roles. I’m proud to say that today I still work with several students whom I taught when they were just starting out. Many have achieved roles in management, training, clinical support, quality assurance and coaching.
What do you find most fulfilling in your current role?
Kim: What I find most fulfilling in my current role is being able to make a difference in patients’ lives by using our advanced technology to identify potential cardiac issues early on, which can lead to better outcomes and even help save lives. Additionally, being able to teach and mentor others and seeing them succeed is incredibly rewarding. I am so happy that I found a field that aligns with my personal passions and allows me to make a positive impact on others. If I could share the most important learning in my career, it is simply to remind everyone to get an ECG, and to do it regularly. It can save your life.
1Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Heart Disease Facts
2 In 2021, Baxter acquired BardyDx as part of its acquisition of Hillrom, a global medical technology leader with a portfolio of digital and connected care solutions and collaboration tools that includes smart bed systems, patient monitoring and diagnostic technologies, respiratory health devices, advanced equipment for the surgical space and other solutions that enable actionable, real-time insights at the point of care.
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