Nursing is truly a family calling for mother and daughter registered nurses Trudy and Tatiana Gastrock, both of whom work at the San Francisco Medical Center, Trudy in labor and delivery and Tatiana in chemotherapy-infusion. Not only was Tatiana born at the San Francisco Medical Center in the same department where Trudy now works, but Trudy’s parents were also in nursing, providing care to elderly patients at another local hospital.
Trudy, who has worked at the San Francisco Medical Center for 21 years, knew from a young age that she wanted to be a nurse, and specifically in labor and delivery. “Seeing what my parents did, I wanted to care for patients at the other end of life,” she said. She completed her education while raising Tatiana, who was born when she was 19. During those years, she and her husband would tag team caring for Tatiana, allowing Trudy to attend nursing school during the day and work as a student nurse in the evening.
Tatiana was four when Trudy graduated and immediately took a position in the cardiac procedure unit. She moved on to med tele and stroke and step down at 1 North before training to become a labor and delivery nurse.
Tatiana, who has worked at the San Francisco Medical Center for two years, was also drawn to nursing from an early age. “I grew up going to appointments with my mom and doing internships and volunteering in the hospital,” she said.
Trudy admits she originally guided Tatiana towards labor and delivery, arranging for her to shadow in her department and in postpartum care and NICU during high school. However, Tatiana knew she had another calling. “I was originally interested in pediatric oncology, but after I took this job, I realized I wanted to work with adults.” Attending school in Hawaii, where the family has relatives, Tatiana did her clinical training at Kaiser Permanente Hawaii.
Inspired by how much her mother enjoyed working in San Francisco, Tatiana always intended to follow in her footsteps. However, she did not tell her parents her plans when she applied for her first job. “I wanted to keep it to myself until I was absolutely sure I got it,” she said. When she did get the job, her mother told her that it was the same clinic where Tatiana’s grandfather went for cancer treatments.
The two frequently coordinate their schedules to eat lunch together, with Trudy often bringing home-cooked leftovers to share. “I think it’s a special bond she and I share together, both working at Kaiser,” said Tatiana. “My mom set me up with the best education I could ask for and the best hospital I could work for. We’re both really happy here and we get to spend quality time together at home and at work.”
As San Francisco natives, both Gastrocks have had many experiences caring for friends, family members, and neighbors. “I’ve seen so many people we know come through here to deliver babies,” said Trudy. “My goddaughter had her daughter here, and she’s now Tatiana’s goddaughter. It’s such a small city.”
“I went to the Japanese Bilingual Bicultural Program Elementary School and Presidio Middle School, and now I get to work on the block where I grew up on,” she said. “There are so many ways we’ve come full circle.”