By Delano Halde
Taking care of people's health needs and taking care of communication needs might not seem related, but both require skills and knowledge that are used each and every day for Brad Janiszeski of Ivanhoe.
He currently works as a full-time dietary manager at Divine Providence Nursing Home and as a part-time radio announcer at KMHL Broadcasting in Marshall.
Both jobs also give Janiszeski the chance to meet new and interesting people each day. Janiszeski especially enjoys being part of two great companies, DPHC and KMHL, he said.
Janiszeski was born in Hendricks to Randy and Connie (Jerzak) Janiszeski. He grew up on a farm seven miles north of Ivanhoe and attended school at Lincoln HI (Hendricks-Ivanhoe) where his favorite subject was English.
While in high school, Janiszeski was employed at DPHC in Ivanhoe as a dietary aide, which he really enjoyed, he said. Some of his duties were washing dishes, preparing evening snacks for hospital and nursing home patients, kitchen cleanup, and miscellaneous jobs.
In addition to that, Janiszeski helped his parents on the farm during his younger days.
Janiszeski received his religious education from St. John Cantius Catholic Church in Wilno, where his family attends.
Following graduation from high school in 2004, Janiszeski attended
Southwest Minnesota State University in Marshall for mass communication.
While attending SMSU, Janiszeski also worked at DPHC in Ivanhoe in the dietary dept.
"Ever since I started working at DPHC, I had an interest in food service," he said. "Working with the hospital staff and serving the nursing home residents was very educational and satisfying."
After gaining more experience, Janiszeski was offered the job of dietary manager in October of 2007. He gladly accepted the position with much excitement, he said.
Janiszeski was also a mobile disc jockey and on-air radio announcer at KMHL where he still works part-time.
He provides KMHL music for weddings and high school dances. Janiszeski is also attending the University of North Dakota to receive his credentials as a certified dietary manager.
As Dietary Manager, Janiszeski manages the dietary department and makes sure the DPHC Nursing Home residents have nutritional care and foods.
He plans the daily menus to make sure they meet all state and federal nutritional guidelines.
Diets vary according to age, health, weight, amount of wellness and activity, and more, Janiszeski said. To stay healthy, a person needs protein to build tissues, fats and carbohydrates to give energy and heat, vitamins and minerals for growth and stamina, and good nutrition to energize the body.
A vast majority of the elderly have special diets.
"A well balanced diet is just as important to an elderly person as it is to a younger person, because as we grow older, our bodies need more nutrients, food elements and plenty of fluids to remain healthy," Janiszeski said.
Janiszeski has worked under three different dietary managers at DPHC. These managers were Leann Gregg, Joyce Krein and Carol Erpelding.
Now Janiszeski is the supervisor.
Besides supervising dietary needs of residents, he also manages the entire dietary budget for the nursing home and schedules staff.
Janiszeski's hours vary from day-to-day because the nursing home kitchen is open seven days a week.
Janiszeski gained a great deal of knowledge and training from the current and former kitchen staff, he said.
"The irony of it all is that at one time, the people I previously worked with and learned numerous things from, are now serving under me since I am now their supervisor," he said.
Janiszeski says there have been changes at DPHC including more resident-centered and focused nutritional care. There are also fewer patients to serve today now compared to years ago.
"The working atmosphere these days is more like one big family than the institutional atmosphere which was present in the past," Janiszeski said. "In the earlier days of my employment, there were more patients to prepare meals for when the hospital was still operating, compared to now."
Despite his busy schedule, Janiszeski still finds time for relaxing activities such as swimming and attending area rodeos. He occasionally does some storm chasing.
His parents, Randy and Connie have been a great influence on his life, he said. Connie has worked at numerous places in the area including Ivanhoe Foods, so she is a familiar face in the community. Janiszeski's sister, Heather, is pursuing a career in nursing. Like her brother, she worked in health care at the Hendricks Hospital and Nursing Home. Janiszeski is engaged to Nicole Fitzsimmons who is originally from the Hendricks area. Nicole, also a 2004 graduate of Lincoln HI, recently graduated from South Dakota State University in Brookings and is pursuing a career in law enforcement.
Janiszeski says he could write a book about all that he has learned as a dietary manager and holding other responsibilities.
"My first job has turned into a career I enjoy; I am honored to have such wonderful colleagues and people in this Ivanhoe community that make DPHC more than employment, but also a second home," Janiszeski said.
His long term goal is to become a registered dietitian.
"Although it may require more time, effort and learning, I am ready and willing to accept the challenge," he said.