Inside Athena: The “First Face” of Tremont Rehab
WAREHAM, M.A. — Cathy Waterman is the first person you see when you walk into The Tremont Rehabilitation and Skilled Care Center. She’s the first voice you hear when you call the Wareham, Massachusetts center. Because of that, Waterman tries to set a good example.
Cathy Waterman
“As the first person that people come in contact with, I basically represent, I believe, I represent the company itself. The day-to-day things in life can stress you out but I try to leave that at home,” she said.
Waterman joined Tremont almost nine years ago as a receptionist. She spent two and a half years in that role, switched to medical records for another two and a half years, and has been back as a receptionist now going on four years.
Prior to joining the company, she spent 19 years as a claims processor for Medicare B Blue Cross Blue Shield. She then found work at a medical company where a coworker took an accounts payable job at Tremont. Waterman was told Tremont was looking for a receptionist, and she was hired for the position. In addition to being the first face people encounter, her duties include compiling a resident room list daily as well as a laundry list depending on intakes and discharges.
“It’s not always easy. I have had family members come in distraught because their family members were in the middle of passing and, doing my job, I’m very strict when it comes to rules because I want to protect everybody…you have to put yourself in their shoes and take a breath,” she said.
Through the struggles, building relationships with residents and their loved ones is very important to her. She said it’s appreciated and that’s why she works so hard. When asked, Waterman said residents would most likely describe her as “a very caring person.”
“I care about people and I think if you’re in this business you really need to care about people whether it’s the residents, whether it’s the family members, whether it’s your coworkers,” she said.
