Meet Donald O. Conaway, CST/CFA. He participated in the ribbon cutting ceremony when Bon Secours Rappahannock General Hospital (RGH) first opened in 1977. And today, after almost 45 years of caring for patients in the Northern Neck community, Donald is retiring as a surgical technologist in the RGH surgical services department.
Donald began his career at Rappahannock General Hospital in October of 1976. He spent five years in the materials management department before moving into the surgical services unit as an operating room tech. Donald has remained in the operating room for the past 40 years of his career. During this time he has advanced through further education, achieving certifications and excelling in his field.
“I’m happy to have had the opportunity to grow with this hospital,” Donald shares. “I’ve seen a lot of changes over the years. It’s been an honor to have worked alongside so many skilled surgeons, and my operating room colleagues are like family to me. I’m appreciative that this hospital has afforded me the opportunity to advance my training and grateful for the chance to have served this community in such a rewarding career for so many years.”
In 2017, Donald was honored by the National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (NBSTSA) with two important career milestones. At the time, Conaway had maintained certification for 25 years as a Certified Surgical First Assistant (CSFA) and 30 years as a Certified Surgical Technologist (CST).
In addition to maintaining his CSFA and CST certifications, Conaway also served on the National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting in an elected role for 12 years during his career.
“We are grateful for Donald’s dedication to RGH and being good help to his peers, our patients and our community,” J. Alan Bailey, vice president administrator for Bon Secours Rappahannock General Hospital, says. “We wish him well on his much-deserved retirement.”
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