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BY KIM JORDAN, DNP, RN, CHIEF NURSING OFFICER, LEHIGH VALLEY HEALTH NETWORK
The World Health Organization declared 2020 the International Year of the Nurse and Midwife. This week also kicks off Nurses Week – an annual time of recognition for nurses, who represent the largest segment of our workforce at Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN).
In a time meant for celebration, our nurses are serving on the front lines of a global pandemic. During Year of the Nurse – the Year of Our Heroes, I want to thank nurses and midwives everywhere for your sacrifice, dedication and compassion.
We’re all in this together. This sentiment comes to life on a daily basis at LVHN. As I check in with nurses, I’m inspired by what I see.
Nurses, physicians and respiratory therapists work as a cohesive team, much like they’ve always done. But now, they are joined by colleagues from areas like rehabilitation and perioperative services, providing care in environments they may never have stepped foot in prior to this pandemic.
It’s the most amazing teamwork I’ve witnessed in my career.
Honoring our nurses – our heroes
Nurses practice in many settings across our health network.
They care for patients at the bedside, in the clinic, on hospice units and on home care teams. They triage calls to the Nurse Information line in our call center, implement the latest technology in clinical informatics and stay up to date on the latest research in quality and patient safety.
They can be found on a MedEvac helicopter, on infection control teams and working in case management. You’ll see them in radiology, inpatient rehabilitation and perioperative services. There’s a nurse giving infusions, running clinical trials, leading a team and educating the next generation of caregivers.
Everywhere you turn, there’s a nurse.
Happy Nurses Week
Today, we honor every nurse for making a difference in the lives of our patients.
I’m #LVHNProud that the Year of the Nurse gives us an opportunity to raise the visibility of all facets of the nursing profession, and I have never been so inspired and so thankful to work with each and every LVHN nurse.
Thank you, nurses (heroes), for all you do.
About the author
Marie (Kim) Jordan, DNP, is Senior Vice President of Patient Care Services and Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) for Lehigh Valley Health Network. Jordan is board certified as a Nurse Executive by the American Nurses Credentialing Center and has completed a Nursing Executive Fellowship with the GE Health Management Academy.
Learn more about nursing excellence at LVHN by visiting LVHN.org/nursing.