A look at a leader: Jana Butler found her calling at IU Health West

By Zoe Walsh, Communications intern for IU Health's Indianapolis Suburban Region

Jana Butler has always felt a calling towards respiratory therapy. Now, she’s a leader.

Jana Butler, manager of Respiratory Care Services, joined the IU Health West team more than a decade ago. Her journey in healthcare started in an ambulance. She was a student shadowing an emergency medical technician (EMT).

A call for a motor vehicle accident one night changed the course of her entire career. At the scene, Butler manually ventilated and provided CPR for the patient.

“After we got (the patient) to the hospital, I said ‘That was amazing.’ The paramedic looked at me and said, ‘If you liked it that much, then you should become a respiratory therapist,’” Butler says.

“Just opening up that door and looking at the avenue, it was a calling,” she says.

Beginning at IU Health

Butler started out as a respiratory therapist assistant at IU Health Methodist Hospital, in 2008. She moved to Riley Hospital for Children before getting offered a leadership position at IU Health West in 2012.

Now, Butler manages four departments: Respiratory Care, Neurodiagnostics, Pulmonary Function Lab, and Sleep Lab.

“Each day is different,” she adds. “Each day is based on what the hospital’s needs are and what the patients need.”

Path to leadership

To develop as a team leader, Butler decided to take classes through the Indiana Hospital Association’s (IHA) Management Institute.

“I think in order to truly inspire others to grow, you have to acknowledge that you need to grow yourself,” she says.

She talked to her director, who offered her a unique opportunity to take the IHA management classes.

“I loved every second of it,” Butler adds.

To her, being with her team and hearing about their success is the most fulfilling part of her job.

“You don’t know about us until you truly need us, and then once you experience the impact of a respiratory therapist, you never forget it,” she says.

Sharing career advice

For anyone interested in healthcare, Butler’s advice is to explore all your options.

“Ask to shadow different disciplines. We may be able to expose you to other professions you didn’t even know existed, and that might help you find your niche and your calling,” she says.

Just respiratory therapy alone offers many different areas of practice. Telehealth services, home care, and outpatient settings are just a few places where respiratory therapists can be found.

“Wherever there is a patient that has difficulty breathing, there is definitely a need for respiratory therapists,” Butler says.

If you are interested in joining a highly skilled team focused on helping others, visit careers.iuhealth.org to learn more and take the first step towards a rewarding career with IU Health.