Love in the air at UK HealthCare

We employ over 9,000 people, all dedicated to providing the most advanced, effective care available. And a few of those 9,000 people are married to one another, so for Valentine’s Day, we asked them what it’s like to work together here at UK HealthCare.

Jason Akhtarekhavari, UK Arts in HealthCare Manager; and Julia Jones, BSN, RN, Gill Heart & Vascular Institute

We met on the front porch of my friend’s house on Forest Park Road during the summer of 2001 (also where Jason proposed in 2008). In June, we will have been married 10 years, together 19.

I’ve worked at UK since 2003, and Jason has worked at UK since 2011. To be honest, most days we’re so busy it’s like we work across town from each other. I appreciate that he and I can relate to each other’s struggles and successes despite being in two very different areas. I also appreciate that because he comes in later than me, he can bring me my badge when I forget it at home, LOL! 

As far as coordinating busy schedules and two kids, we both understand that we need flexibility from each other. Our schedules aren’t always the same from week to week, so we communicate and adjust as we go. Our Outlook calendars definitely play a major part in our success.

Dr. Justin Fraser, Surgical Director, UK Comprehensive Stroke Center; and Dr. Claire Fraser, Advanced Eye Care

We met on the first day of college at Princeton University – we helped each other move into the dormitory. We were acquaintances throughout college, with overlapping groups of friends, and then reconnected when we both chose to attend Cornell for medical school. We sang together in a medical school a cappella group, became close friends, and the rest is history.

We really enjoy working together at UK. The process of finding a location to settle after residency training where we could both have fruitful careers was a bit challenging. UK welcomed us with enthusiasm. Claire was able to complete a fellowship in VitreoRetinal Surgery at UK that is one of the best surgical fellowships in the country. Our specialties are in high demand here, as stroke/cerebrovascular disease and retinal disease are particular health disparities in the Bluegrass. It is very fulfilling to be able to help care for so many patients. It also presents a challenge to each of us to improve these aspects of health in our region. Occasionally, we are able to collaborate in the care of specific patients, which we find to be especially gratifying. 

J.J. Housley, PharmD, Assistant Operations Director; and Megan Housley, Business Development Manager, Kentucky Regional Extension Center

UK HealthCare is such an important part of our lives. We’ve met some of the most wonderful people and made friends that have become family. We got married when we were working at UK HealthCare and had both of our babies at UK HealthCare. We couldn’t be happier with the life that UK HealthCare has provided for us!

Dr. Larry Goldstein, Co-Director, Kentucky Neuroscience Institute, and Chair, Department of Neurology; and Ricki Goldstein, Neonatology, Kentucky Children’s Hospital

I organized a KNI-KCH Care Coordination team meeting that occurs monthly. Ricki is leading the efforts to develop a pediatric complex care program at UK. She attends the Care Coordination team meeting as there can be an intersection between her program and the needs of children with neurological disorders.

Dr. Brian Adkins, Emergency Medicine; and Miranda Adkins, DNP, RN, UK College of Nursing

Brian and I met in 2006 when we were both hired at a local hospital in the emergency department. He had just recently graduated from UK's Emergency Medicine Residency program and I had just completed nursing school. We were friends and colleagues for about a year before we began dating. I thoroughly enjoyed working with Brian. I found him to be one of the most caring physicians I'd encountered and his bedside manner was, and is, one of the things I love about him most.

It is truly awesome to be married to someone who is also in healthcare because we are able to bounce things off of one another and we understand the complexities of one another's work. While work schedules can be very challenging, especially with two small children, (Kate, 6. and Claire, 2), working at UK provides the ability to flex schedules in order to eliminate the need for outside childcare while we fulfill our professional goals.