BAGRAM AIR FIELD, Afghanistan - The Staff Sgt. Heathe N. Craig Joint Theater Hospital joined the American Nurses Association in celebrating National Nurses Week.
Annually, National Nurses Week begins May 6, marked as Registered Nurses Recognition Day and ends May 12, the birthday of Florence Nightingale, founder of nursing as a modern profession.
CJTH kicked off the week of events with a proclamation ceremony. In her opening remarks, U.S. Air Force Col. Carole Farley, the CJTH Expeditionary Medical Operations Squadron Commander said, “Nursing is considered both a science and an art, it's through science that we have learned to cure patients, but it's the art of nursing that helps them heal.”
In addition to honoring the nurses and technicians, the weeklong celebration serves to raise awareness about the value of nursing and helps educate fellow service members about the role nurses play in meeting the health care needs in the deployed environment.
“It’s not every day that nurses and techs get recognized for all the hard work we do. We don’t do it for recognition; we do what we do because we truly care about our patients and their well-being,” said U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Zavier Grier, a vascular technician from Tucson, Ariz., stationed at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas. “However, it does feel good to be recognized and to know our hard work is appreciated.”
Military nurses can serve as a nurse practitioner, flight nurse, educator, outpatient clinic, or inpatient nurse and flight or squadron commander. Military medical technicians can be found working as independent duty medical technicians, superintendents, in clinics or on inpatient wards, as instructors, or heading out to the flight line to pick up wounded service members as aeromedical evacuation technicians.
“I love what I do,” said U.S. Air Force Maj. Erika Hooper, an emergency department nurse manager from Warner Robins, Ga., stationed at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas. “There are good days and bad days, but at the end of the day I know I have done everything I could for that patient especially here. Sometimes it’s very challenging but the patients and our team count on us.”
The ANA supports and encourages National Nurses Week recognition programs through the state and district nurses associations, other specialty nursing organizations, educational facilities, and independent health care companies and institutions.
U.S. Army Spc. Josh Lee, Jr., from Task Force Diamond, Bravo Detachment, 101st Financial Management Company, 10th Sustainment Brigade Troops Battalion, who works as a cashier at the Army finance office, wrote a poem in honor of Nurses Week titled, “Healthcare at Its Best.”
The poem was framed and donated as a door prize at the proclamation kickoff ceremony.
“Serving as the Chief Nurse at CJTH is the highlight of my 21 years as a nurse in the Air Force. It is a true honor to serve with this amazing and dedicated team of highly skilled and compassionate airmen,” said U.S. Air Force Col. Julia Stoshak. “Every day they give 100 percent of themselves to save, put back together and heal our wounded warriors, coalition forces and civilians.”
Scheduled activities under this year’s theme, “We Lead, We Partner, We Care, Any Time, Anywhere” include pancake night, movie night, Cinco de Mayo dance celebration and a 5K fun run/walk. These activities give the nurses and medical technicians on Bagram Air Field a chance to celebrate and for other service members to show their appreciation for these medical professionals.
| Date Taken: | 05.10.2012 |
| Date Posted: | 05.11.2012 03:07 |
| Story ID: | 88280 |
| Location: | AF |
| Hometown: | LACKLAND AIR FORCE BASE, TEXAS, US |
| Hometown: | TUCSON, ARIZONA, US |
| Hometown: | WARNER ROBINS, GEORGIA, US |
| Web Views: | 691 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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