Community Highlights: Meet Denise Stewart of OR Nurses Nationwide/Travel Nurses, Inc.

Hi Denise, so excited to have you on the platform. So, before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today.
Business History – a questionnaire from SOE Inducted in 2010

Why did you choose to base your business in Memphis?

It wasn’t a conscious choice – it’s where my family lived, where my previous career placed me and where I met my dear friend and business partner, Carol Paterson. When I met Carol in 1988 in the surgery department at St. Francis Hospital, she had the idea to team up and start a company – O.R. Nurses, Inc. I worked the first OR shift on August 1, 1988, at Memphis Surgery Center. O.R. Nurses, Inc. became OR Nurses Nationwide in 2015, and in 2017 we branded our travel division, Travel Nurses, Inc.

What advice would you give to someone starting a business?

Take the risk, dream the dream, give it the very best you have to give, and pray A lot!!

What has been the greatest reward for owning your own business?

To see the business, grow far beyond what Carol and I had initially imagined it could be, even after Carol’s death just two years after we started OR Nurses. And with that growth, knowing our business provided an opportunity for so many wonderful, talented healthcare professionals and corporate staff over the years.

What was the greatest challenge you faced?

Overcoming a devastating merger in 2011 that almost bankrupted the company. Also restructuring the company in 2019 to bring back the original culture that made us who we are.

What qualities do you think one needs to be a successful entrepreneur?

Tenacity, optimism, unwavering faith, and confidence in the vision.

What would people be surprised to find out about you?

I’ve medaled in 5 triathlons – the competition does thin out as the age goes up – and I didn’t start until I was 51! (It makes me laugh just to think about it now.)

With the exception of faith, family, and friends, what are three things that you cannot live without?

Hmmm – Great food – Memphis has that covered! Live music – Memphis definitely has that covered!

Experiencing the Beauty of all things outdoors – Wolf River, Shelby Farms, Collierville Town Square, and the Mississippi River, to name a few.

What are a few of your favorite things about Memphis?

The soulfulness, fascinatingly diverse people, entrepreneurial innovation, music – Overton Park Shell, art – River Arts Festival, Crosstown Concourse, and the unique charm of the different communities in and around Memphis.

Where did you attend college? St. John’s School of Nursing & Evangel University, Springfield, MO, and Maryville University, St. Louis, MO

What year did you start your business? 1988

How many employees would you estimate you have had since you started your company?

Corporate and seasonal professional staff – over 10,000 since 1988

Are you involved in community service? If yes, which organizations and how many hours would you estimate you volunteer in a year?

Served on Church Health Board of Trustees, and Baptist University of Health Sciences Board of Directors. Participate in any fundraising functions for both. The American Heart Association “Go Red for Women” and “STEM” program. As a company, we give each corporate employee 4 hours per month of paid volunteer service to the organization of their choice.

Note: you can listen to the Society of Entrepreneurs podcast interview they did on me in April 2022. It might give a different perspective.

website: www.ornurses.com

We’ve been impressed with OR Nurses Nationwide/Travel Nurses, Inc., but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
We send healthcare professionals to healthcare facilities around the country. We specialized in surgery from 1988-1998. Now we staff every area of a healthcare facility. We staff RNs, CSTs, some LPNs, and RRTs.

We are known for the excellence and quality of our healthcare professionals – we do not cut corners just to make more money. We don’t hire everyone who applies.

Our legacy brand, OR Nurses Nationwide, has the respect and recognition of every healthcare facility in the Midsouth, and nationally we have grown our Travel Nurses, Inc. brand that nurses and clients recognize and respect.

We just secured the Great Recruiters Certified 2022 designation and the Best of Staffing Talent for three years now on Clearly Rated. We also just received the Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Companies designation. We are so proud, But We can’t publish until late august when they send us all the badges and permission links.

Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
I am concerned about the increased crime in our city. I am also discouraged by how our local news media always headlines those crimes – shootings, murders, etc. It doesn’t make us look good to the nation overall. As I stated, I love this city and its soulfulness, fascinatingly diverse people, entrepreneurial innovation, and music. We are growing and transforming the nation’s negative perspective to a positive change in Memphis!