BY KAREN BOSSICK

Sue DeChevrieux has always held herself accountable for the care her patients received. And she’s held her coworkers accountable, as well.

When she heard a new nurse questioning what a doctor had prescribed, she asked the nurse why he was verifying the orders if he didn’t think they were appropriate.

“I said, ‘Because I take orders well.’ To which Sue scoffed and said, ‘That is one thing you can never do as a nurse—you call the doctor and get a satisfactory answer why,’ ” recounted Blair Choate, supervisor of Med/Surg for St. Luke’s Wood River.

DeChevrieux is retiring after 45 years of advocating for her patients through 45 years of service in surgery with St. Luke’s.

When she began, she charted things with pen on paper. When Christmas rolled around, she always told her coworkers: “Let the kids with families enjoy the holidays—I’ll take mine in March.”

“Sue has delivered the highest level of bedside care for her patients,” said Choate. “And her care does not end when she punches out at the end of the day. She is an integral part of the care-giving community in our valley, delivering home services to those in need.”