Associated Files
Title
WBUR Oral History Project: Maureen Banks
Contributor
Banks, Maureen (Interviewee)
O'Brien, Joanna Shea (Interviewer)
Guberman, Jayne (Recordist)
McDonough, Ryan (Contributor)
O'Brien, Joanna Shea (Interviewer)
Guberman, Jayne (Recordist)
McDonough, Ryan (Contributor)
Language
English
Date created
February 02, 2014
Type of resource
Sound recording
Genre
Interviews
Oral histories (document genres)
Oral histories (document genres)
Format
Sound Recording
Digital origin
born digital
Abstract/Description
Countless lives were affected by the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings and their
aftermath. The WBUR Oral History Project collects stories from individuals whose lives were
immediately and irrevocably changed by these events. Thanks to the generous sponsorship
of WBUR, our team of oral historians, and the participation of these interview subjects, Our
Marathon has tried to ensure that these stories are not forgotten. We believe that these
stories matter, and that they demonstrate the ways historical events transform the lives of
the people who lived through them. Oral historians Jayne K. Guberman, Ph.D., and Joanna Shea
O'Brien conducted the interviews for this project. Oral History Project Manager Kristi
Girdharry, Our Marathon Project Co-Director Jim McGrath, and Community Outreach Lead Joanne
DeCaro recorded the interviews and provided research assistance and post-interview processing.
McGrath and Our Marathon Audio Technician Ryan McDonough provided sound editing and processing
for all of the interviews and clips. The opinions and statements expressed in interviews and
related content featured in the WBUR Oral History Project do not necessarily reflect the
opinions of Our Marathon, WBUR, Northeastern University, or any employees or volunteers
affiliated with these institutions and projects. Our Marathon and The WBUR Oral History
project make no assertions about the veracity of statements made by participants in this
project. Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital played a critical role in the rehabilitation of
many of the most seriously injured survivors of the bombings, including 15 amputees (two of
whom were double amputees). They managed the opening of their new facility in the Boston Navy
Yard just days after the bombings with the admission and care for dozens of patients and
intense media attention, both of which continued for several months. Many of their staff were
personally affected as they were runners on the Spaulding marathon charity team or were
waiting near the finish line to support the team and witnessed the bombings. Our Marathon's
WBUR Oral History Project sought to collect a cross-section of interviews from Spaulding staff
to chronicle how the rehabilitative care of marathon bombing survivors was an integral part of
the city's response to violence and mass trauma. Maureen Banks (RN, MS, MBA, CNAA) is the
Chief Operating Officer of Spaulding Rehabilitation Network and the President of Spaulding
Hospital for Continuing Medical Care North Shore and Cambridge President of Spaulding
Rehabilitation Hospital Cape Cod. She grew up in Brighton, Massachusetts in a second
generation large Irish Catholic family. She received a nursing degree from Boston College, a
Master's Degree from the University of Connecticut and an MBA and an advanced certificate in
health administration from Southern New Hampshire University. She has taught in undergraduate
and graduate nursing programs throughout her career, and is currently a part time faculty at
the MGH Institute of Health Professions. As a nurse, Ms. Banks' clinical focus has been
oncology and hospice care. Prior to the Fall of 2012, Maureen Banks had never run in her life.
She grew up on the marathon route, and reflects on the marathon's evolution during her
lifetime. She was inspired by the elite runners, the women runners and the wheelchair
athletes, but never considered the marathon as something she could do. With the urging of
Spaulding Rehab Network President David Storto, an avid marathoner and runner for the
Spaulding Race for Rehab marathon fundraising team, she began training. She comically and
emotionally describes how much she disliked running, never got a "runner's high" and yet
persevered on towards race day. She describes the days leading up to the 2013 marathon, the
marathon race, and what it was like to be stopped before finishing because of the bombings.
Maureen was very emotional talking about completing the ceremonial one mile race a month
later, and arriving at the Copley Square memorial to honor those who were injured and lost.
Maureen discusses the role of Spaulding, its integrated care approach and the new state of the
art facility that opened in April 2013. She shares how Spaulding coped in the weeks
immediately after the marathon bombing, including her responsibilities taking care of patients
and staff at Spaulding Hospital for Continuing Medical Care in Cambridge during the ensuing
weeks. She describes that despite the opening of the new building in Charlestown, what truly
distinguishes Spaulding treatment is the staff. Providing rehabilitative care for the
patients; Maureen talks about how the new open space gyms, the aquatic facility, and the
advanced research in prosthetic care offered by Spaulding have also contributed to far more
comprehensive care. During the interview, Maureen reflects on what drew her to nursing and
hospice care. She describes how her experience helping dying patients has shifted the focus of
her decision making in the boardroom and in executive meetings, making her a better
administrator and mentor. Maureen's interview concludes with reflections on the strength of
the survivors and how their recovery has inspired her, along with the many layers of support
from staff that has helped in the post marathon healing.
Notes
The opinions and statements expressed in interviews and related
content featured in the WBUR Oral History Project do not necessarily reflect the opinions of
Our Marathon, WBUR, Northeastern University, or any employees or volunteers affiliated with
these institutions and projects. Our Marathon and The WBUR Oral History project make no
assertions about the veracity of statements made by participants in this project.
Source note
The WBUR Oral History Project. Maureen Banks (Oral History), Joanna
Shea O'Brien (Oral Historian), Jayne Guberman (Recorder), Ryan McDonough (Sound Processing and
Editing)
Related item
Our Marathon: The Boston Bombing Digital Archive
Subjects and keywords
Boston Marathon Bombing, Boston, Mass., 2013
Permanent URL
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