Long Island Mother-Daughter Nurse Duo Fight Coronavirus Together

STONY BROOK, NY — When the coronavirus outbreak began, one Stony Brook University Hospital nurse came out of retirement to join her daughter on the front lines, Stony Brook Medicine said in a news release.

Mary Beth Patterson retired from SBUH in December 2018 after 12 years and moved to New Hampshire. Less than two years later, she heeded Gov. Andrew Cuomo's call for help and returned to Stony Brook to work per-diem. Mary Beth now works in the hospital’s Cardiac Cath Lab but has been floating to various floors due to the COVID-19 pandemic. She plans on continuing to do so as long as she is needed, according to the hospital.

Her daughter, Kelly Patterson, began working at SBUH as a nurse in March 2018. She started in the cardiothoracic intensive care unit and now works in the cardiovascular ICU.

"We don’t work in the same unit, but it would be an honor to work alongside my daughter," Mary Beth said in the release.

The two are very close and have actually been trying to coordinate their days off, during what can sometimes be an overwhelming time, to see each other, according to Stony Brook Medicine. The duo has celebrated many milestones together in both their personal and professional careers.