Comments and Tributes:
Professor Dolores "Deo" Little, MN, RN

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Deo is a legend and an icon in nursing in Washington State and nationally. Many of today's great nursing leaders, teachers and practitioners were students of Deo during her long tenure as an undergraduate professor, clinical faculty and graduate student thesis advisor at the University of Washington. For those who were fortunate enough to have had her as a teacher, mentor, colleague and friend, you know what a significant loss her passing is to the profession and to all of us personally.

We all loved her intelligence, her vision, her determination and passion for nursing and quality health care as well as her wit and sense of humor... and so much more... not only have we lost a treasured icon, the world has lost a hero of health care! Those of us who were privileged to know her and serve with her shall be forever changed for better for that experience and I am truly grateful to be among them.

Judy Huntington, MN, RN
Executive Director, Washington State Nurses Association
Seattle, WA

Deo was an incredible mentor. I felt privileged to know her over these many years since she first showed my nursing class "Mrs.. Reynolds Needs a Nurse." Her very wonderful dry sense of humor has shaped my approach to difficult situations throughout my career. She would always come up with the best one-liner that would assure a memory of her point. In fact, it gave me great comfort that she was the holder of the "definition of nursing." She can continue to help and guide us even now and forever as the leader and inspiration for quality and the "care" in nursing care. I will miss her to the depths of my heart.

Patty Hayes, MN, RN
WSNA Executive Director 1989-1992
Assistant Secretary, Washington State Department of Health, Division of Community and Family Health
Olympia, WA

What wonderful memories. Deo was president of WSNA when she and the Board offered me the position of WSNA Executive Director in 1968. She promised to help me if I took the job. She was as good as her word. She was always there, supporting WSNA programs and pushing us to move farther and faster. We will all miss her but we will never forget her and her wonderful contributions to nursing and the professional association.

Beverly Smith
WSNA Executive Director 1968-1983
Seattle, WA

What a privilege it was to know Deo as an instructor, mentor, colleague and friend. She helped "bring up" a great many of us. Deo was a visionary well beyond the dreams of most nurses. She was on the leading edge of the nurse practitioner movement. And I remember listening in awe as she described the first clinic in Darrington,WA a remote community,where nurse practitioners were providing services, funded by grants she was able to obtain. This is only one example of the many ways she moved the profession forward. She was a mover and a shaker for nursing.

Deo believed it was important for every nurse to belong to the professional association and she worked tirelessly for the economic and general welfare of every nurse as well as professional development. Her years as President and member of the WSNA Board as well as the ANA Board were outstanding. She mentored many of us who joined the organization and stood with the organization at all levels and at all times, through disappointments and wins. She always was "One Strong Voice For Nursing"

Eunice Cole, RN, BS
Past President, WSNA and the American Nurses Association
Concord, CA

I'm sending a photo of Deo taken in 1979, dug out of an old photo album (see above). It really seems to capture her spirit. Deo was escorting me out to Harborview to orient me to her senior students' leadership course. She was my thesis advisor and had scrounged around to get me the T.A. position. I was still just a little bit scared of her those days. This particular afternoon I happened to have a camera in my backpack and if I remember correctly I had to almost beg her to let me take her picture. Oh that was bold, but I'm glad I risked it! Here she is - seated in the bus shelter behind the Health Sciences building, on the way to Harborview, "waiting for the Health Sciences Express." I'll be coming out from Atlanta for her service. I'm sure the memorial service will give her great honor. She was the best!

Marty Bartels DesRosier, PhD, RN
Watkinsville, GA

In a Christmas letter, written in 1988, Deo wrote regarding old age. "We laugh about the good old days when we talked of our love affairs, attending football games, conventions, dances, etc., and now we talk about our immobility, our cholesterol levels, medical bills and our Bran Oatmeal Muffins. To laugh is to endure and love each moment of our lives and that is what we are continuing to do." I send this in appreciation of Deo and Marguerite.

Mary C. Jones, PHN
Faculty, Shoreline Community College School of Nursing
Seattle, WA

I could not help but pause and reflect when you sent the email out about Deo Little.... She was someone that many of us knew, yet did not. I personally knew her as my colleague Barbara J. Brown introduced me to her in 1981 in Seattle and I thought I had gone to heaven... You see, she was the supervisor in "Mrs. Reynolds Needs A Nurse." I could not help and reflect on that moment when Dr. Little came marching in to Mrs. Reynold's room (who was in the iron lung). I just wonder how many lives Dr. Little touched in the scope of her years on earth. Thank you so much for sharing the final chapters of such an icon who wrote such a story for us all in caring. I feel very blessed that Barbara J. took the time when I was young to introduce me to such an icon in our profession.

Roy L. Simpson, RN,C, CMAC, FNAP, FAAN
Vice President, Nursing Informatics, Cerner Corporation
Atlanta, GA

Mrs. Reynold's needs a nurse is a film I must have worn out when I was teaching Fundamentals of Nursing and Med Surg Nursing.

Deo made so many memorable and meaningful contributions to nursing and health care and always had a smile and enthusiasm.

Norma Lang, PhD, RN, FRCN FAAN
Former Dean and Professor Emeritus, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing
Philadelphia, PA

What a Sad day for all of us. Deo is an ICON for us here at Skagit Valley Hospital. I have the 1968 signed contract for Skagit Valley Hospital negotiated and signed by Deo Little, President, at that time for the Washington State Nurses Association. I also, have a signed copy of the print "Mrs Reynold's Needs a Nurse", which I got Deo to sign for all of our nurses, when I met her for the first and last time in late 1990's. We have this framed and on our nurses wall at Skagit Valley Hospital. She will be missed by us all!

Julia Weinberg, RN
Staff Nurse and member of the WSNA Cabinet on Economic and General Welfare
Bow, WA

I was a young nurse working for the Oregon Nurses Association in the early 70s. We had a 2 or 3-day nursing practice conference, attended in those times by 400+ RNs. We brought Deo and Doris Carnevali down to lead one of the conferences. They brought the house down!! Not only were they humorous, but they imparted such important concepts; and I believe to this day that the practice of some RNs in Oregon continues to be influenced by the wisdom of Deo and Doris. In later years, I served on the ANA Nominating Committee with Deo. My, oh my, what a great time was had by that committee. Work was always fun when she was around, but not at the expense of producing a quality product!I'm saddened to learn of Deo's death, but thrilled that I was able to know her, learn from her, and serve with her. This is a loss to nursing and to all humankind!

Paula A. McNeil, RN, MS
Executive Director, Western Institute of Nursing
Portland, OR

Deo worked directly with me as the Washington State Joint Practice Commission formed (between WSNA and WSMA) for the purpose of designing what became today's nurse practitioner role.

I've loved Deo for many reasons but chief among them was her fearlessness. As Director of the Washington State Joint Practice Commission I remember how worried I was that I would get WSNA into legal "hot water" over the draft documents that later became the Washington State ARNP legislation. The documents truly challenged the practice line between medicine and nursing. Those documents also ended the days of the professional nurse being afraid to challenge what was right for the patient. They signaled a new dawn. Those were powerful documents at that time. I knew that I could gain consensus from the small group of nurses and physicians around the Joint Practice Commission table but I fretted to Deo that the ideas would blow up in a huge mushroom cloud once I released them to the rest of the world.

Deo would say, "Bonnie, speak UP, speak UP!" The nurse-for-Mrs.-Reynolds (Deo) that I knew went far beyond the bedside. Deo dreamed of substantial and meaningful changes in nursing practice. Deo would coax me from the front and then Deo would push me from behind! Deo knew no fear of being out on a limb, and she taught me to at least accept the limb even if it wasn't comfortable. In the end, despite threats of a lawsuit and shenanigans too numerous to mention here, those rules and regulations went forward and the ARNP story is a part of today's real professional nursing practice.

Quick-witted Deo used humor to attract even the most recalcitrant to her point of view. We once went to Chicago to a Joint Practice Commission meeting. One physician remarked, after Deo had delivered a fast retort, that "women out west are wild". Deo reassured him that they were and that she was only warming up at that point. She was, too, and as we left to return home the folks in Chicago remarked about the "liberated nurses" from Washington State needing no special laws to do what they were going to do anyway.

Deo sat on the Puget Sound Health Systems Agency Board during my tenure as its President. Deo often listened respectfully to corporations seeking high favors from government and then she would surgically remove the argument. "What does this have to do with good patient care?" was her theme.

In the end, Deo's goal was simply about nursing excellence. Deo asked nothing less than optimum health and wellness for each person who found themselves in the health care system. Deo taught us the optimal nursing standards required in order to achieve that goal. Deo lived her message; the courage to carry on the task is her final gift. Thanks to Deo, I and other nurses are still willing to go out on that limb. We learned from Deo that it is never comfortable but always important to be there.

Bonnie Sandahl, ARNP
Seattle, WA

For all you more "seasoned" people, you will remember "Mrs.. Reynolds Needs a Nurse." How many times have you seen it? Deo was on faculty when I was at the University of Washington and she could bring sunshine into even the most overcast Seattle Day. In a passing conversation she could have you in a side-splitting laugh with one of her quips. Deo was clearly one of the "finest nurse leaders" of the past generation.

Clarann Weinert, SC, PhD, RN, FAAN
Professor and Director of the Center for Research, Montana State University School of Nursing
Bozeman, MT

Thank you for the wonderful tribute to Dolores. I knew her when I was working in the ER at Harborview and then was one of her students when I returned to get my degree at the U of W. I used her film for many classes at W.F. West High School in a Nurse's Aide Class. What a great person!

Virginia Lintott, RN, BS
Chehalis, WA

Thank you for letting us all know about Deo’s passing. She shaped the way I viewed nursing as a profession. I am eternally grateful for all she contributed the practice.

Judy Massong, RN, JD
Former WSNA Lobbyist and Past-President of the Washington State Trial Lawyers Association
Seattle, WA

Deo clearly ends a special ERA in nursing where the profession broke a lot of ground, bringing on enhanced recognition of the contributions of nursing to health care. She was a mover and shaker and never backed down from any challenge, including physician counterparts like "Jack Lein"

Hilke Faber, MN, RN, FAAN
WSNA Program Specialist
Seattle, WA

I "knew" Deo Little before I ever arrived in Washington State. I used to show Mrs. Reynolds Needs a Nurse to nursing students at Rush College of Nursing (Chicago) in the 1970s(!). What a film! Given the rushed and often too chaotic hospital care provided today, Mrs. Reynolds still needs nurses who are knowledgeable, alert, informed, and quick to assertively resolve problems. In the film and in professional life, how well Deo Little played her part!

Frederica W. OConnor, RN, PhD
Dept of Psychosocial and Community Health, UNiversity of Washington School of Nursing
Seattle, WA

How sweetly tied together all our lives are. How hard it is when someone slips the bonds we've shared. With heartfelt sympathy,

Frances Terry, MN, ARNP
Seattle WA

Everyone who knew her is sadden by her death. I can remember the first day for student nurse Peds experience at Harborview Medical Center. We were all there waiting for "our instructor" …more than a little nervous. Deo was a bit late and we were so relieved to see her. Her comment as she flew on the ward was, "Well, a little bit spastic are we?" That comment was an ice breaker as we certainly were " a little bit spastic" until our instructor got there and we got down to business.

Barbara Feyh, MSN, RN
Director Community and Family Services, Spokane Health Department
Spokane, WA

Deo was a true nursing "best practice." I first met Deo while attending the UW nursing administration program. Setting the expectation of involvement, she took a group of graduate students to the WSNA convention, introduced us around, and asked each of us to stand up and speak to an issue. Mentoring and leadership in action! One of the lessons I have frequently passed on was her challenge to each of us "to explain to one patient or client a week, the thought and knowledge that went into their nursing care. They in turn will be our best advocates." Deo's legacy will ripple through generations of nurses.

Katherine Bradley, PhD, RN
Former WSNA Board Member, Administrator Oregon Office of Family Health
Portland, OR

I am so saddened to hear of dear Deo's passing. She was a true friend and mentor to me when I joined the faculty at UW in 1978, teaching in nursing administration. She always looked at the brighter side of everything and everybody. She was so welcoming at the American Academy of Nursing when I was inducted in 1977.I can't think of any nurse leader who affected so many lives as she and Doris Carnivalli did with "Mrs. Reynolds Needs A. Nurse." Her consummate enthusiasm for all she did enriched the lives of nurses, friends and family who enjoyed her humor, energy and zest for life. I know she has a special place with our Lord. God Bless Deo Little.

Barbara J. Brown, RN, EdD, FAAN, FNAP
Editor-in-Chief, Nursing Administration Quarterly

In 1961, I was a new RN Graduate of Sacred Heart School of Nursing, Spokane, Wa. My first job was at the University of Wa., where I met Deo Little. What an inspirational leader in nursing. I was the night nurse in her "Mrs. Reynold's Needs A Nurse." We had fun being led by Deo in this production. A lovely memory.

Midge Koll Hartz, RN (retired)
Volunteer at Swedish/Providence Hospital, Seattle, WA

I have used the film “Mrs. Reynolds Needs a Nurse” for many years when teaching the beginning nursing students about nursing process at Seattle Pacific University. The film depicts a nursing supervisor (Deo Little) who is reminded by a student that nurses must treat patients individually and consider the whole person. Deo, the supervisor, takes the nursing staff through a problem solving process to determine how to best meet the needs of this difficult patient, Mrs. Reynolds. The staff members collect data, analyze it and develop a plan to give Mrs. Reynolds comprehensive care as they implement the nursing process.

The principles of assessment, critical thinking, and individualized patient care are the same today as in 1959 when Deo’s film was made. Through this film Deo continues to teach the students of today as she did in years past. The legacy of Deo Little lives on in the nursing classroom of today.

Ruby Englund, M.N., R.N.
Associate Professor, Seattle Pacific University
Seattle, WA

I first met Deo and Marguerite when I joined the School of Nursing faculty as a lecturer with Ruth Fine’s nursing administration program in 1981. They both became not only colleagues who welcomed me enthusiastically, but also friends who loved to shop and do lunch! Deo taught me so much about nursing and teaching. She was a wonderful mentor who supported me through my doctoral program. Above all I remember her laugh because she loved to laugh at silly things (she loved Dave Barry), but also she laughed at foibles and pretentiousness. I miss her.

Edna Zebelman, PhD, RN
Director, Continuing Nursing Education
Bellevue Community College, Bellevue, WA

When I came to the UW School of Nursing as its new dean in 1975 Deo was one of the most influential faculty members, and it soon became clear to me why. She had the uncanny ability to not only know, but understand, what was going on and how the energy could be harnessed in the most positive way. Shortly after I came we instituted a faculty governance structure and Deo was elected the first chair of the faculty. I loved working with her in that role. I can't truthfully say she made my job easier, but she made my job considerably more relevant to the concerns of the faculty. Several generations of students were influenced by her teachings and are better nurses because of it. Deo always cared about everyone, but she cared about nursing more than anything. A powerful advocate, a superb speaker, a marvelous human being, she will be missed but her influence will continue forever.

Rheba de Tornyay, PhD, RN, FAAN
Dean Emeritas
University of Washington School of Nursing
Seattle, WA

Deo was a wonderful "found treasure". I will miss her.

Maureen B. Niland, PhD, RN, CNNA
Seattle, WA