Before she was nurse manager of the intermediate care unit (IMCU), Sheila Loomas, RN, was a teen in a pink-striped pinafore, white tights and shoes, filing charts on the hospital floor.

“You got excited to put on your outfit and go help,” Loomas said.

As a “candy striper,” Loomas’ first connection to Salem Health was through the volunteer program in high school.

“We did a little bit of intake and output,” she said. “You just helped wherever you were needed.”

That simple yet profound act — helping — never left her.

Sheila with her original candy striper uniform.

‘Such a privilege’

“I always knew I wanted to be a nurse,” she said. “That was kind of like a calling. I never had any other thought. . . . I always had an interest in the science classes and physiology. And my father was a social worker, so I grew up with a parent who modeled service, and that just seemed like a good fit.”

Loomas received a scholarship from the hospital auxiliary to help her become a registered nurse — it’s one of her favorite memories.

“$800 in today's world? That's nothing!” she said. “But it was just such a privilege to get the scholarship.”

Loomas started at Salem Hospital in 1988 as a new grad on night shift, where she stayed for ten years.

“That’s my fun fact!” she said. “I’ll go around and talk to staff and say, ‘Do you know how many years I worked nights?’ And then they’re shocked.”

Eventually, she moved to days, a better fit for her growing family. With an eye toward service, and a penchant for Lean principles, Loomas rose through the ranks — charge nurse, assistant nurse manager, interim director — before becoming manager of her unit when the Building A tower opened.

“Most of the staff I’ve hired,” she said, “I’m the only manager they know.”

Why Salem Health?

What kept her working for Salem Health?

“I always found continuing growth opportunities,” Loomas said. “I mean, if you would have told me back then [as a volunteer] that I was going to be a nurse manager, I would have been horrified . . . that role, to me, was so far above my scope at that time, you know?”

But for nearly four decades? That takes something special.

“There was no reason to leave,” she said. “The culture here was amazing. And the people and the relationships, I really get a lot of energy from the relationships that I built. That's something that's been really valuable to me.”

She’s confident her teams will continue to thrive when she retires.

“They know how to weather change,” she said.

But what she’ll miss most is the people.

“The relationships that you forge over your career are pretty priceless,” she said.

Her next chapter

One word: Cruises. Loomas and her husband met on one.

“I really want to go to the Mediterranean,” she said. “I've never been to the Mediterranean.”

She’ll relax this summer, spend more time with family and maybe do some tidying up.

“I’m going to clean my house from top to bottom,” she said, relieving her hubby from his domestic duties (at least for a bit).

Yet, ever the servant heart, she’s not ruling out a return.

“Eventually, I'll kind of look for some volunteer opportunity, maybe with hospice or maybe back here,” Loomas said. “There's an innate a reward in serving that I don't think you get from anything else. When you are giving of yourself to another person . . . and you see progress . . . you can’t put a price on that reward.”

“And that’s, to me, the calling of being a nurse.”

Where Sheila started — and where you can begin

Before she led a unit, Loomas volunteered as a high school student at Salem Hospital.

“If you're thinking about a health care career, doing that volunteer work helps,” she said. “You get exposure. You learn. And you really do help.”

At Salem Health, volunteers make a meaningful difference every day — from greeting guests to supporting patients and staff behind the scenes. Whether you’re a student, a retiree or simply someone who wants to give back, there’s a place for you here.

Join our volunteer team. Make a difference in health care — just like Loomas did.