LVHN is now proudly part of Jefferson Health
La Lehigh Valley Health Network se enorgullece en ser ahora parte de Jefferson Health.
Proudly Part of Jefferson Health
LVHN nurse makes a difference from a distance, working hard to build a hospital in West Africa
When Roosevelt Totaye, RN, introduces himself as your nurse, you know right away you are his top priority. You see care in his eyes, hear compassion in his voice and feel comfort in every interaction.
What you do not see on the surface is all he’s endured as a refugee and how he’s giving back by building a future for the people of his community a world away in West Africa.
Civil war broke out in Liberia on Christmas Eve in 1989 and changed the course of Totaye’s life.
“I ran wherever my feet could take me,” he says. “Mom went north, dad went west and I went east – the direction didn’t matter as long as we were running from danger.”
Totaye sought refuge in Cote d'Ivoire, known also as Ivory Coast, before war spilled across the border and sent him running again. He made it to Ghana, which is where he’d stay for the remainder of his childhood before returning to Liberia as a young adult in the early 2000s.
As a child, Totaye watched nurses in the refugee camps. They administered vaccinations, provided aid and offered a healing touch.
“They were angels,” he said. “They were lifesavers.”
It was then he started down a path that would eventually lead him to a nursing career at Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN).
Totaye came to the United States in 2012. By then he was 30 and had been working in Liberia as a junior high vice principal. He always prioritized education, taking every opportunity available to him while he was in the refugee camps. The United Nations sponsored him so he could earn a degree.
“Education is key. Everything else that we accumulate in life, we're going to lose,” he says. “But what you put in your head is what stays with you. It’s the only thing that’s never wasted.”
Totaye’s wife came to the U.S. first and completed the English as a Second Language program at Northampton Community College (NCC). When he arrived in the U.S., his plan was to transfer his credits, earn a diploma through NCC and continue teaching in the Lehigh Valley. The process to convert his transcript to credits that aligned with U.S. standards was complicated and expensive, so Totaye saw an opportunity to try something new.
“I owe so much to the United States. I wanted to serve, to give back for all the U.S. did for me and my family,” says Totaye. “My wife encouraged me to pursue nursing. I earned a degree in community health through a United Nations program in Ghana, so I had the right background. The main reason I felt called to pursue nursing is to serve people.”
Totaye started a nursing program at NCC and participated in a bridge program with East Stroudsburg University to earn his bachelor’s degree. He completed clinical rotations at Lehigh Valley Hospital (LVH)–Muhlenberg, and when it was time to choose where to start his nursing career, LVHN was top of mind.
“If you’ve fought all your life, needing help from people and wanting to belong, and you come to an organization where everybody treats you the same, nobody looks at you differently and you feel welcome, you’ve found your home,” he says. “LVHN is the best place to start your career and work from hire to retire.”
While working full time as a registered nurse, Totaye earned his master’s degree from DeSales University and is now earning his Doctor of Nursing Practice and Master of Business Administration, which will prepare him well for his next goal.
Totaye grew up needing help from people and measures his success by how much he can help make a difference in Dewoblee, the tiny village in which he grew up.
“I'm not a dreamer,” says Totaye. “To dream, you must be sleeping and when you’re sleeping you’re not accomplishing your goals, so I have vision. And my vision is to build a teaching hospital in Liberia.”
Totaye purchased a plot of dense forest land in West Africa and took the first step toward making his vision become reality. He sends a portion of each paycheck he earns to his family in Liberia who manage the project day to day. The funds cover labor and materials for clearing the land and making the bricks one by one.
“We need 15,000 bricks to complete the foundation,” says Totaye. “We have 9,000 bricks already, so we’re making great progress. I send money back to the crew, they build more bricks, and that’s how we’ll continue until we have enough to construct the building.”
It’s going to be the first teaching hospital in Liberia. On his land, Totaye envisions a college of nursing built next to the hospital so nurses can be educated and stay in their community to provide care. Construction will take time, so Totaye is doing what he can to make a difference in the lives of his people now.
“In Liberia, we use motorcycles for commercial transport,” he says. “I purchased a motorcycle and pay for gas to help people travel from one place to another.”
While motorcycle travel is more efficient than walking, it’s not the ideal form of transportation for all.
“Women who are in labor are being transported by motorcycle,” says Totaye. “You are in labor riding on the back of a motorcycle? That is the worst experience imaginable.”
So, he purchased a pickup truck and sent it overseas to Liberia to be used as an ambulance. Now he’s saving up to outfit it with supplies so it functions as a true, self-sufficient ambulance to transport people who need health care.
The four pillars that form LVHN’s nursing culture – Teamwork and Compassion, Nurse-Led Innovation and Transformation, Support and Communication, and Professional Development and Career Advancement – define what it means to be an LVHN nurse and are “Our Shared Calling.”
Totaye embraces our shared calling by paving the way for a brighter future in health care. “Nursing is a calling,” he says. “I tell my patients, ‘If you weren’t here today, I would go to another unit. If I weren’t here today, you would go to another unit. So, I’m here because you are and you’re here because I am. We’re in this together.’”
At LVHN, we’re not just reimagining nursing practice – we’re actively shaping a future where nurses are empowered, supported and inspired to deliver the best possible care. By aligning our initiatives with the principles of teamwork, innovation, communication and growth, we’re creating a nurturing environment for our patients and giving a place for nurses like Totaye to grow, thrive and deliver unsurpassed care.
