Caps Off to our Nurses!!
- MAY 2006
- Français
Altogether, 1,800 Registered Nurses and Registered Practical Nurses work in the seven sites of the Niagara Health System, delivering patient care 24/7. May 8 to 14 marks annual Nurses Week, a time for celebration and recognition for the hard work and dedication of our largest professional group.
"The theme for Nurses Week this year is 'Nursing – Promoting Healthy Choices for Healthy Living' and we are holding recognition events to acknowledge the hard work of our nurses as well as education events, to assist them in professional development," says June Duesburry-Porter, Chief Nursing Executive and Vice President Patient Services with the NHS. "For the second year, a highlight of the week will be the presentation of Nursing Excellence Awards at our annual Dinner. RNs and RPNs nominate their colleagues based on the NHS's core values of compassion, professionalism, and respect shown to each other, their patients and families."
Part of the celebration will include the NHS's recent designation by the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario (RNAO) as a Best Practice Spotlight Organization. This designation recognizes the NHS's many initiatives over the last three years to develop, implement and evaluate Best Practice Guidelines. The NHS is one of only nine Ontario hospitals to receive this designation. "We are very proud of the Best Practice Guidelines our nurses have developed and put into practice," June says. "All of these Guidelines improve patient care, including preventing patient falls, managing pain and smoking cessation."
The celebration dinner, with almost 200 nurses planning to attend, is taking place Tuesday, May 9 at Club Italia, Niagara Falls. The dinner will feature keynote speaker Bob Koehler, a Niagara resident who knows our nurses are amazing people and whose message is a combination of tough love, common sense, and real world experience.
A highlight of the dinner will be the announcement of eight award-winning nurses, from a total of 28 nominations by healthcare colleagues. There will be one overall Nursing Professional Development Award winner and seven Nursing Excellence Award winners representing each NHS site. These awards are for exceptional professional practice in the delivery of patient care.
Nurses Week Teas are being held at each of the NHS's seven sites during the week for nurses. In addition, education events are taking place at each site to help nurses develop their individual learning plans, in keeping with RNAO standards. A special day will also introduce nurses to a mentoring program, designed to partner experienced nurses with new graduates so they become familiar with processes and patient practices on clinical units.
For more information on Nursing initiatives, click here