After the Celebrations, the Gratitude Remains

Last week, we wrapped up Hospital Week and Nurses Week across GBMC HealthCare, and I hope many of you had a chance to enjoy at least one of the celebrations.

At the hospital, Kona Ice made a visit, which felt like exactly the right kind of treat as the weather starts to warm up. There's something about a colorful cup of shaved ice that can make even a very busy day feel a little lighter. I’m not saying it solves every problem in healthcare, but I'm saying blue raspberry has its moments.

We also celebrated our incredible nurses through the Art of Nursing Awards, now in its 11th year at GBMC HealthCare. This year, there were more than 300 nominations, which says something powerful about the talent, compassion, and respect within our nursing teams.

I want to congratulate this year’s Art of Nursing Award winners:

• Nurse Leader Award: JoAnn Parr, MSN, MS-HCM, RN, C
• Nurse Leader Award - Gilchrist: Bonnie Speicher, MHA,BSN,RN,CHPN
• Nurse Leader Award - Frontline: Ariana Haywood, MS, BSN, RN
• Clinical Assistant Support Award - Inpatient: Bonnie Jones, NST
• Clinical Assistant Support Award - Outpatient: Kamela Kess, CNA
• Patient- and Family-Centered Care: Felicity Kirby, BSN, RN, OCN
• Mrs. H. Norman Baetjer Jr. Nursing Graduate of the Year: Regan McGraw, BS, RN
• Nurse Clinician of the Year: Charlie O'Brien, BSN, RN
• Evidence-Based Practice Nursing: The Endoscopy Nursing Team
• Diversity in Nursing: Beanne Dela Pena, BSN, RN, ONC
• The Nightingale Award: Donna Campbell, RN

Each of these awards reflects a different dimension of what makes nursing so special: clinical excellence, advocacy, leadership, compassion, evidence-based practice, inclusion, teamwork, and a strong commitment to patients and families.

Nursing is not one thing. It is science, skill, advocacy, leadership, compassion, teaching, critical thinking, teamwork, and presence. It is the calm voice in a hard moment. It is the extra check that prevents harm. It is the hand on a shoulder, the careful explanation, the clinical judgment, and the courage to speak up when something does not seem right.

Hospital Week is also a chance to recognize that healthcare takes all of us. Nurses, physicians, advanced practice providers, therapists, technicians, environmental services, food and nutrition, transport, security, facilities, pharmacy, registration, volunteers, administrative teams, home care, hospice, outpatient practices, and so many others. Every role matters. Every role contributes to health, healing, and hope.

These weeks always make me a little nervous. They remind me of buying a gift for my wife. I want to get it exactly right, but history suggests I do not always succeed. There may or may not be a closet somewhere with evidence.

The same is true with recognition weeks. We want to celebrate nurses in a meaningful way. We want to celebrate all team members in a meaningful way. And because Nurses Week and Hospital Week are so close together, sometimes overlapping, it can be tricky to get the balance right.

But the intent is simple: gratitude.

Gratitude for the care you provide. Gratitude for the way you show up for patients and families. Gratitude for the way you support one another. Gratitude for the work that is visible, and for the work that happens quietly behind the scenes.

The ice melts. The banners come down. The week ends.

But the gratitude remains.

Thank you for all you do for GBMC HealthCare and for the people we are privileged to serve.