Today is Armed Forces Day

to serve as a physician or nurse in the Armed Forces- deserves special recognition.

2015AFDPoster

Working in the healthcare profession is an honor and privilege.

To serve in the armed forces of one’s country is also an honor and privilege.

 

 

So to do both- to serve as a physician or nurse in the Armed Forces- deserves special recognition.

Armed Forces Day has been observed yearly, the third Saturday in May, since 1950. 

 

 

 

 

Meet the Army Surgeon General- Dr. Nadja West

 

Thanking nurses every day

There are still women and men who choose to become nurses, not for a lucrative salary, or a convenient work schedule, but because they want to make a difference in the world, one patient at a time. For that, we offer our appreciation and respect.

The United States observes National Nurses’ Week every year in May;  it is well deserved.

National Nurses Week begins each year on May 6th and ends on May 12th, Florence Nightingale’s birthday.

two hospital personnel working with patients' records at a nurse’s station.
Few nurses wear white uniforms or caps now. And most hospitals and clinics have digital medical records. But this is how medical care was done for many years. Photo credit Bob Sanders, used compliments of the Centers for Disease Control, CDC

 

 

 

collage of nurses working with patients in a mission clinic
CompassionLink medical mission trip- nurses on our team work with patients in Panama

 

I am a physician because of a nurse. As a child I was interested in health care and decided to become a nurse- that’s what girls did in the 1970’s. I needed advice so I talked to the nurse at my high school about her career.

After answering my questions, she looked straight at me and said, “Aletha, have you thought about going to medical school?” Until that time, I had not. But from that suggestion my path changed and grew into a medical career .

Some of my best friends have been and are nurses. They understand my crazy life. Since the majority of nurses are women, we have that common bond;  they understand juggling a career with marriage and motherhood.

a doctor and nurse talk to a patient in an Asian country.
A local nurse assisted me with a patient encounter in Thailand

 

 

Unfortunately, nursing,  like medical practice, has become heavy on documentation. I hear my nurse friends lament the amount of time they spend charting at a computer instead of caring at the bedside.

The American health care system is changing in ways sometimes characterized as an overhaul- payment reform, new delivery methods, quality measurements, patient engagement are all buzzwords now. But one thing hasn’t changed.

There are still women and men who choose to become nurses, not for a lucrative salary, or a convenient work schedule, but because they want to make a difference in the world, one patient at a time. For that, we offer our appreciation and respect.

Heart and Soul- The Story of Florence Nightingale

 

FLORENCE NIGHTINGALE by Sony Pictures

 

 

 

 

 

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Why not thank a nurse today? They truly embody the

HEART of health. stethoscope with a heart

 

Please share this post. Thanks. Dr. Aletha