This year marks the 201st year of National Nurses’ Week. There is no doubt that COVID-19 has brought upon many challenges for nurses all over the world.
For centuries nurses have been providing outstanding care and saving lives. These frontline warriors deserve a giant thank you, and we want to share some fun ways you can do this with the residents in your community.
RECENT CHALLENGES
With the spread of COVID-19, we can all agree that we have experienced hardship and challenges in some way or another. From the very beginning, nurses have been at the frontlines bearing the brunt of it. They have been required to put in longer hours and provide even more extensive care, despite having a shortage of supplies. (Remember when everyone was stocking up on hand sanitizer and could not find masks anywhere? How could we forget, right?). Not only did the pandemic require more from our nurses, but they were forced to put their health and the health of their families at risk. This goes to show that not all superheroes wear capes.
WAYS TO CELEBRATE
As we are in the midst of Nurses’ Appreciation Week, we must thank our nurses for all the hard work they do in communities every day. Here are some meaningful yet simple ways you can celebrate nurses in your life with your residents:
Create thank you cards
A handwritten message warms the heart. Host an activity for residents to create handmade thank you cards for their favorite nurse. It is a great way to get their creative juices flowing and send a personal message to show their appreciation.
Have some fun in the kitchen
There is nothing better than a homemade treat. For residents that enjoy being in the kitchen, this is a great opportunity to share their favorite recipes with the nurses they care about.
Host an awards ceremony
Each nurse is special in their own way. Highlight their strengths and accomplishments by hosting a memorable awards ceremony. Get fancy or keep it simple. The most important thing is to honor the hard work that nurses do every day.
Exchange stories
Storytelling is one of the greatest past times. Allow residents to share their favorite stories and encourage your fellow nurses to tell theirs as well. Whether the stories make you laugh or cry, reminiscing on these moments brings everyone closer together.
Stop at a local coffee shop
Long hours, little sleep, stressful situations, how do nurses do it all? Coffee, lots and lots of coffee. Big hearts and outstanding work ethic help too. Treating your nurses to a cup of joe from their favorite coffee shop is a simple yet meaningful way to say thank you (and fuel them for their next shift).
Plan a social hour
Human connection is valued now more than ever. Quarantining throughout the last year has been a very lonely experience for a lot of us. Bring your community together by hosting a socially distanced happy hour. Enjoy snacks, play games, and toast to the amazing nurses and the incredible work they do.
HISTORY
Nurse appreciation week stems back to a famous nurse you have probably heard of, Florence Nightingale. Florence had been called to help injured soldiers during the Crimean War back in the mid-1800s. Hospitals at the time were understaffed and unsanitary. Florence gathered a group of nurses together, and they got to work. Even with a shortage of supplies and gruesome conditions, due to her excellent care and increased sanitation, she reduced the death rate by 2/3rds! In the United States, we not only celebrate on May 6th but the celebration and appreciation has been extended an entire week during Nurses’ Appreciation Week, ending on Florence’s birthday.
TOOLS THAT HELP
However you chose to celebrate our healthcare heroes, make sure you let your nurses know that you appreciate them. Here at ECP, we want to thank all nurses for their dedication and efforts. Our goal is to provide the essentials tools that nurses need to complete their job in the best way possible, without adding more work to their already busy schedule. ECP’s simple yet powerful medication and care-related features give nurses everything they need to provide the best quality care right at their fingertips. Our lives would not be the same without our nurses, so we not only take this week but every week to celebrate our frontline warriors.
View the tools ECP provides.
Extended Care Professional (ECP) is an EHR (electronic health record), eMAR (electronic medication administration record), and clinical charting system for long-term care communities. ECP offers customizable assessments that automatically create care plans, State-specific compliance and reporting, and a leading pharmacy interface connected to the top pharmacy software systems. You’ll experience improved productivity, level of care and compliance as soon as you start using ECP, whether you are switching from another software provider or paper documentation.
Click here to learn more about ECP or request a personalized demo.
