The annual UAB Medicine Service Awards were created to honor employees for years of faithful service and acknowledge their special contributions to our organization. As part of the 2025 Service Awards recognition, Mary Duncan, RN – a clinical care coordinator with the UAB Division of Gastrointestinal Surgery – reflected on her years at UAB Medicine.
In 1980 – almost 16 years before the formation of UAB Health System and a decade before ground was broken for The Kirklin Clinic of UAB Hospital – Duncan began working as a nursing assistant. After graduating from the UAB School of Nursing in 1982, she worked at UAB Hospital-Highlands, known as South Highlands Hospital at the time. Like many healthcare professionals who have served in clinical settings for nearly half a century, Duncan notes how much has changed.
“In the 1980s, our medical records were done on paper charts,” Duncan said. “You knew which shift had charted any particular patient information, because we used a different color ink for each shift. I worked a 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. shift, so we used green pens. The midnight shift wrote in red. That’s a long way from computers and electronic records.”
A visit from Bob Hope
Duncan also recalls some highlights. “We saw so many athletes and famous people, especially through Sports Medicine,” she said. She reflects back on a time when Charlie Boswell was receiving care for serious health issues. The founder of the Charley Boswell Celebrity Golf Classic also helped fund the Eye Foundation Hospital of Birmingham, now UAB Callahan Eye.
“Bob Hope and his wife visited Mr. Boswell,” Duncan says. “I was in the room with them. Our instructions for caring for all the famous athletes who came through were, ‘Don’t ask for an autograph.’”
Above all, Duncan says she’s always enjoyed patient care and appreciates the experiences it provided.
“There’s a lot of satisfaction in looking after people when they really need it,” Duncan said. “I’ve always had a soft spot for our elderly patients; they tend to be so sweet and appreciative of everything you do. These experiences meant so much to me. I joke with everyone that I’m not the smartest one in the room, but at this point, I may have the most common sense.”
Duncan retired on May 16, 2026, and we wish her the best in this next chapter of life.