This employee spotlight features Ananthi Sundaram, Advanced Clinical Technician at CDC East. Once her daughters reached school age, Ananthi looked forward to a return to the healthcare field. She often volunteered in hospitals to gain exposure and search for her perfect fit. An advertisement in the Sunday paper for the Centers for Dialysis Care technician training program caught her eye, and Ananthi has now been with CDC for more than 15 years. Read more about Ananthi below.
Ananthi Sundaram
More About Ananthi
Ananthi immigrated to the Cleveland area from India in 1992 with her husband and two young daughters. Once her girls reached school age, Ananthi looked forward to a return to the healthcare field, as she was previously a pediatric physician in India. Once she made her decision to return to the workforce, she volunteered in hospitals to gain exposure and search for her perfect fit. She also spent time with Dr. Clemente, a now-retired nephrologist who practiced at Fairview Hospital. She enjoyed observing the dialysis process; however, neither she nor Dr. Clemente knew how to break into the field. She first became aware of Centers for Dialysis Care after seeing an advertisement in the Sunday paper for the technician training program.
Ananthi recognizes facility manager Fanya Zalipsky and former manager Linda Floyd for showing an interest in her and providing the support and extra time for her to learn and master the technician role. While she had some familiarity with peritoneal dialysis in India, hemodialysis and the technology were new to Ananthi. She feels it took her a long time to gain confidence and encourages new hires to give themselves time as well. She recognizes all the kind and wonderful staff who helped her along the way, and she hopes she offers this same grace to the new trainees that she precepts.
While Ananthi has spent her entire career with CDC, with more than 15 years at the East location, she was happy to volunteer to work at the Middleburg Heights facility and care for COVID-19 patients. While in India, Ananthi cared for many patients with infectious diseases and was excited to assist those recovering from COVID-19. She stated CDC did a great job following protocols, providing PPE, and educating both patients and staff immediately and throughout the process. She commented that there was no internal spread of COVID-19 at the facilities and all the staff followed the protocols to keep everyone safe.
While Ananthi moved to a new location with new people and a new climate, she was happy to land at CDC, a place where she could continue caring for patients, which is something she loves to do. The adjustment from pediatrics to caring for adult dialysis patients proved to be faster-paced and more physical, but her dedication and time spent mastering her skills allows her to give back to both new dialysis trainees and the patients she cares for. In fact, one of Ananthi’s new trainees recommended she be a spotlight employee!
Ananthi, thank you for giving the new trainees the extra care they need and for your dedication to your patients.