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At the age of three, Mary Lynn underwent cardiac surgery for a congenital heart defect. Little did she know this would be the start of a long relationship with CHEO and the people who healed her.
Reflecting on some of her earliest memories, Mary Lynn remembers how her nurse made her feel safe and comfortable when she woke up in hospital without her mom by her side. For those few moments apart, Mary Lynn sat at the nurses’ station, twirled in the office chair and ate a popsicle while she waited for her mom to come back from a much-needed break.
Mary Lynn’s routine checkups continued into her teenage years, and while no one is that excited about going to a hospital, she always felt welcomed and cared for at CHEO. Years later, Mary Lynn started her career at CHEO – a move she says, “felt perfect. I was coming back to a place where I had been a patient, but with a newfound curiosity for CHEO and the work they do.”
Today, Mary Lynn is a Senior Business Systems Analyst – a role far different than when she started in a clinical capacity as a Communicative Disorders Assistant with CHEO’s Development and Rehabilitation department.
Her passions have guided her more than 25-year career at CHEO where she thrives on supporting people through change. With her many years of experience, Mary Lynn has had some challenging days, but she says, “What is always evident is the impact of our work. Across CHEO, there’s a willingness to help – that is our common goal.”
The familiarity of being a patient came in handy again when in 2017, her 11-year-old daughter was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes and Mary Lynn experienced CHEO’s amazing capacity to help and to heal once more. CHEO’s Diabetes team stepped in and provided education sessions which set them on a path to confidently manage her daughter’s condition. “In my view, that confidence and ability to advocate is a direct result of the care and support she received from the Endocrinology team at CHEO,” says Mary Lynn.
CHEO is filled with passionate and committed people like Mary Lynn. Join us.