SHELTON, WA – As a medical assistant at Mason Clinic, Hannah Norton is an integral part of the Mason Health team. Her willingness to go above and beyond her duties has been a major help to her coworkers and patients, especially during the summer rollout of Mason Health’s new electronic medical records (EMR) domain, Domain Northwest. Norton’s “can-do” attitude and team spirit is why her peers have nominated and selected her for the February 2022 Employee of the Month.

Norton grew up in Shelton, graduating from Shelton High School in 2008. She worked as a daycare teacher in Olympia for three years before deciding to go back to school to become a medical assistant.

“I had my son, and I wanted a more stable job,” she said. “I’ve always been interested in customer service-type jobs and helping people. I researched different things and this interested me.”

Norton attended South Puget Sound Community College. During her studies, she completed a five-week externship program at MGH Olympic Physicians. Mason Health offered her a job during the second week of the program. She started in 2016.

Norton worked as a medical assistant at both Olympic Physicians and Mountain View Women’s Health Clinic before moving into Mason Clinic with the Olympic Physicians team in June 2021. During the summer 2021 rollout of Mason Health’s new electronic medical system, Norton took it upon herself to help providers across multiple specialties, upstairs and downstairs at Mason Clinic, update their settings so the transition could be smooth for her coworkers and patients.

“I like helping people, and I like working here because it’s like a family,” she said. “It’s awesome getting to know patients and their families, and them getting to know you, or being with a woman throughout her whole pregnancy and then seeing the baby. Being the medical assistant, you set the tone for the whole appointment, so I try to make it as positive as possible.”

Norton values the family atmosphere where she works. When she had a recent eye injury, her coworkers offered their support.

“Since I worked in the women’s clinic, at Olympic Physicians and now at Mason Clinic, I have a nice perspective and can say that everywhere you go at Mason Health, it’s a nice work family and everyone is kind,” she said. “When I had a bad eye injury and lost my vision, so many people reached out to offer childcare, bring me food and drive me places. You don’t get that everywhere you go.”

Norton’s left eye is recovering. Outside of work, she loves to camp when the weather is nice with her son, 8, and daughter, 4. She loves to read, and she and her husband, Wes, also have two cats and a dog.

Mason Health, Public Hospital District No. 1 of Mason County, is certified by Det Norske Veritas (DNV) and is a licensed and accredited acute care hospital with a level four emergency trauma designation. There are more than 100 physicians on staff in 19 specialties. For more information or to find a health care provider, visit www.MasonGeneral.com.