Skip to contents
In This Issue:
Obituary
BWH mourns the loss of Janice McGonagle, a dedicated Admitting officer who celebrated her 40-year service anniversary at BWH this past year. She died Jan. 1.
Ms. McGonagle, who arrived at 5 a.m. each day to check patients in for surgery, had a knack for making them laugh.
“Janice was able to put patients and their families at ease—no easy feat on the day a patient is having surgery,” said Chris Collins, director of Patient Access Services. “We will miss hearing her laugh bright and early every morning, as well as the patients and families she admitted, who were also laughing.”
Ms. McGonagle, who grew up in Mission Hill and recently lived in Brookline, began her career as a unit coordinator at the Boston Lying In, where her mother also worked. When the hospitals merged in 1980 to form BWH, she continued as a unit coordinator for several years before transitioning to Patient Access Services.
Patients arriving for surgery felt such strong connections with her that they would often return to visit her following surgery to tell her how it went. On BWH’s patient satisfaction surveys, patients frequently mentioned the cheerful person who admitted them, and often times, that person was Ms. McGonagle.
“She was very reassuring to patients,” said her colleague Joann Mohammed, Admitting interviewer.
Her co-workers in Patient Access Services remember how willing she was to help anyone who needed it. “She would do anything for anyone, and she went out of her way for me many times,” said Mohammed, recalling times that Ms. McGonagle would drive her to and from appointments after work. “That’s what I’ll remember the most—her helpfulness towards others.”
She is survived by her siblings, Michael, James, Sr. Helen Miriam SSND, Joseph and John, and many nieces and nephews.
A funeral Mass was celebrated Jan. 8 at The Basilica of Our Lady of Perpetual Help (Mission Church), followed by interment at New Calvary Cemetery. A BWH memorial service is being planned.