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New leaders take helm at New Madrid Living Center
NEW MADRID, Mo. - Tom Ayers loves sports.
He has done a bit of coaching and often works sports metaphors into his conversation. He said he always knew he wanted to be part of team.
Since she was 4 years old, Karen Ratcliff wanted to be a nurse.
Now Ayers and Ratcliff consider themselves teammates at the New Madrid Living Center.
“We are not a family, but we are a team here. If someone is in trouble, the staff wants to know what they can do to help. That’s true in all the departments,” Ratcliff said.
Nodding in agreement, Ayers added, “The goal is winning the game. Our win is taking good care of these folks.”
Since July 1, Ayers has served as administrator at the New Madrid Living Center, replacing long-time administrator Kim Ivie after she took a position in education with the parent company.
A 1979 graduate of Kelly High School, Ayers attended Southwest Baptist University, where he admits he struggled to decide on his major. That is until one day during a film presentation in a sociology class when a picture flashed up of a man hanging from a tree and a crowd standing around.
“I remember thinking, why didn’t someone do something to help that poor guy,” Ayers recalled. “I didn’t see a burning bush or anything like that but this small voice says, ‘Tom instead of you saying why didn’t somebody do something to help him, why don’t you do something to help people when you see a need.’ So I changed my major to psychology and I have tried to be true to that moment ever since my sophomore year in college.”
After graduating with degrees in sociology and psychology, Ayers worked for over 18 years with the Missouri Department of Health in various capacities. He then moved into nursing home administration with Health Systems Inc. and has worked at various nursing homes in Southeast Missouri for almost 22 years now.
Married for over 40 years, Ayers and his wife have two grown sons and four grandchildren. He also is a licensed minister and ordained deacon.
“Not all ministry comes from behind a pulpit on a Sunday morning,” Ayers said. “A lot of ministry comes from different places. One such place is out on the floor at the nursing home or even from behind a desk.”
At New Madrid Living Center, Ayers said his job is to oversee all that goes on. He is quick to point he doesn’t do it all but works to ensure the people and the systems are in place to care for New Madrid Living Center’s 61 residents.
“I’m like a coach,” Ayers said returning to his sports metaphors. “I am only as good as my team.”
Ayers added the New Madrid Living Center is fortunate to add Ratcliff to that team. Ratcliff joined the staff Aug. 6 as the building’s director of nursing.
The Doniphan native has used her nursing skills in a variety of jobs. She first became familiar with the New Madrid Living Center as a nursing consultant. Also she served as a travel director of nursing, working in 40 states.
Ratcliff and her husband are the parents of a son, who has retired from the Army, and a daughter, who is also a nurse. In August 2023, her husband died and Ratcliff said she decided it was time to come home and stay.
She said she considers herself fortunate the job of director of nursing was open at the New Madrid Living Center.
“Walking into a building where everything is so great – the nurses, the department heads. They care about the residents, they care about each other. There is such a great change of pace. I don’t know why anyone would go anywhere else,” Ratcliff said.
Ayers said he and Ratcliff talk a lot about their work.
“I told her before she came here that I would really have to lean on her a lot and I do. But Karen is real easy to communicate with and I trust her,” he said.
Ratcliff described Ayers as a good administrator.
“I have been a nurse for 46 years. He doesn’t tell me how to be a nurse,” she said. “But if I need him he is there. We run things past each other.”
The pair also praised former administrator Ivie. They point out under her direction, the home was well run and staff organized.
“It made my life so much easier when I walked in here because Kim had put these things in place. I have to give her a ton of credit,” he said.
Ayers and Ratcliff also credit the stability of the staff as benefiting not just their jobs but the lives of the residents.
“They know the residents. They know the residents’ families. They know how to relate to them and know if something is wrong just by spending a few minutes with the residents,” Ratcliff said.
She noted recently a resident complained of not feeling well but other than that showed no symptoms of illness. A nurse reported her concerns to Ratcliff and they decided to send the man to the hospital for a check-up.
Because the nurse was so familiar with the resident, Retcliff said they were able to get him to the hospital quickly, where he was diagnosed with having a heart attack. The heart attack was caught early so the man’s heart suffered no significant damage, she added.
The two also praised their staff for their commitment to the residents. They said many of the staff are familiar with the residents prior to their coming to the center.
Ayers called that important.
“These are people who have contributed greatly to society. They are your teachers, your preachers, your bankers, your farmers. Now they need some care. Now it is our turn,” he said.
It isn’t easy work, but Ayers and Ratcliff agreed for them, it is where they were meant to be.
“I believe that was my calling. My gift from God. I have never regretted it a day in my life,’ said Ratcliff. “All about the facility I see the same commitment. It is their calling, their gift from God. They work to try to make every single day the best day of these residents’ lives.”